Penn State vs. Temple preview

Nittany Lions look for 4-0 start against much-improved Owls

BY THE NUMBERS: #15 Penn State Battles Temple

Date: Saturday, September 20th
Time: 12:00 p.m. ET
Location: Beaver Stadium / State College, PA

Following Penn State’s 55-13 drubbing of Syracuse at the Carrier Dome last week, Coach Joe Paterno will try to improve his career record to 25-0 against Temple when the Nittany Lions host the Owls this Saturday.

Temple enters Beaver Stadium with a 1-2 record this season following back-to-back losses on the final play of the game to Connecticut and Buffalo, respectively. But don’t overlook the improvement of the Temple program under Coach Al Golden. The Owls won four games last season for the first time since 2002 and have been very competitive in their first three contests in 2008.

Watch out for Temple Quarterback Adam DiMichele who has thrown for more than 600 yards including five touchdowns through three games as well as a Temple defense that has allowed a respectable 16.3 points per game this season.

> Buy Penn State clothing & hats online through Big Ten Fans as well as 2008 Penn State football tickets.

For more about this intrastate matchup, let’s take a closer look at the numbers:

• 55 - Penn State scored 55 points last week on the road at Syracuse which equaled the team’s 2008 scoring average thus far. The Nittany Lions are 4 th in the nation in scoring with a well-balanced offensive attack and possess a scoring margin of 41 points ranking them among the best in the nation. Meanwhile, Temple is averaging only 24 points per game, which ranks them 73 rd in the nation. It appears the Nittany Lions have too much firepower for the Owls to compete.

• 263 - Coach Joe Paterno must be happy as his football team is averaging an impressive 263 rushing yards per game this season, good for 9 th in the nation. The same can’t be said for Coach Al Golden as Temple averages only 105 rushing yards per game, ranking them near the bottom at 101 st in the nation. Look for Penn State’s front seven to make the Owls a one-dimensional football team this weekend.

• 35 - Penn State has scored at least 35 points in the first half in each of their three games this season. This is the first time the Nittany Lions have done that since 1994 when they went undefeated. With QB Daryll Clark and RB Evan Royster off to fast starts and one of the best wide receiving corps in the nation (Williams, Norwood, Butler), this trend could continue this weekend.

Notes: Suspended players DE Maurice Evans and DT Abe Koroma were charged with one count each of possession of a small amount of marijuana on Wednesday. There is no change in the players’ status for this weekend’s game against Temple... Penn State quarterbacks Daryll Clark, Pat Devlin and Paul Cianciolo have not thrown an interception this season... RB Evan Royster leads the Nittany Lions in scoring with six touchdowns... K Kevin Kelly is 3/4 on field goals and a perfect 19/19 on extra points through three games.

by Chris Goodrich
BigTen-fans.com Penn State Correspondent

> Check out the rest of the Big Ten football coverage here at Big Ten Fans!