Penn State Nittany Lions vs Illinois Fighting Illini Football Preview

If you appreciate good offense on a football field and like your Saturday afternoons filled with points aplenty, you will find it hard to sit through this early-afternoon encounter on the second full weekend of October.

After being blown away at Iowa last week, the Penn State Nittany Lions return home to host the Illinois Fighting Illini in a matchup of 2-2 teams who have struggled mightily to dent other end zones against appreciably accomplished opponents.

Penn State’s offense, engineered by freshman quarterback Robert Bolden, has struggled this season… and that’s being rather charitable about the whole matter.  In their 24-3 loss in Iowa City on Oct. 2, the Nittany Lions ran for just 53 yards and put up just three points.  They gained just one yard from scrimmage in the first quarter, and were unable to mount a comeback after trailing 17-3 at halftime.

Penn State has scored just six touchdowns in 20 red-zone opportunities this season. 

The Lions’ only points last week were on a Collin Wagner field goal at the end of the first half. Penn State had three chances to score inside the Iowa 5 in the third quarter of last week’s game, and on fourth-and-goal from the Hawkeye 1, it appeared that Bolden had a sure touchdown in front of him as he darted to the right side of the field. Bolden’s left shoulder bounced off an Iowa defender and landed on the goal line, but for some strange reason, Bolden didn’t attempt to reach the ball across the white paint. The ball stayed in his right arm near his right shoulder, which landed short of the goal line. Replays confirmed that when Bolden hit the turf, no part of the ball had broken the plane of the goal line. On second-and-goal or even third-and-goal, it’s understandable and somewhat wise to not reach the ball over the goal line, because it can be stripped by a defender. On fourth-and-goal, however, the go-for-broke nature of such a play requires that a ballcarrier do whatever it takes to get the pigskin across the goal line. Bolden failed to sell out on that play, which typified the nature of a very trying season for this PSU offense.

Frustration is building in Happy Valley as a response to the poor performance of the young Lions, who have yet to put together a consistent offensive performance through four games.

Illinois was competitive against second-ranked Ohio State last week at home, falling 24-13 but keeping the game close throughout.  It wasn’t over until a Buckeye touchdown in the final two minutes.  The experience should help freshman quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase handle his first Big Ten road game. Yet, the setback also illustrated the unique futility of being an Illinois football player.

With 4:36 left to go in regulation, Illinois trailed Ohio State, 17-10, and naturally needed a touchdown to tie. A field goal at that late stage of competition did the Illini absolutely no good whatsoever. In a six-point game, a field goal would have been appreciably valuable, but not in a seven-point contest. Nevertheless, Illinois coach Ron Zook ordered a field-goal attempt on fourth down, and after Illinois tallied those meaningless three points, Ohio State salted away the game with a touchdown the Illini didn’t try to get. With Penn State, offensive impotence is due to the deficiencies of players. At Illinois, a lack of production is in many ways tied to the coaches.

In teeing up this game against Penn State, Illinois running back Mikel Leshoure will need to perform for the visitors. Leshoure carried 19 times for 80 yards against Ohio State, and now has 478 yards on 77 carries this season, good for 6.2 yards per carry.  Leshoure and Scheelhaase have led a strong Illinois rushing attack that ranks 29th nationally in yards per game (201.5). It only makes the Illini’s point-scoring woes – just two total touchdowns in two games against BCS conference opponents – that much more disappointing to contemplate.

Penn State and Illinois won’t light up the scoreboard this weekend. Any touchdowns that emerge in this game will own a great deal of value.

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