Penn State vs. Rutgers Grades

Sep 5, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin signals during the third quarter against the Temple Owl at Lincoln Financial Field. Temple defeated Penn State 27-10. Mandatory Credit: Matthew O’Haren- USA TODAY Sports

Coaching:

The coaches had the team prepared this week and the players delivered in the second quarter to really put the game away early.  Rutgers never threatened after being down three scores and the coaches stuck with a rushing attack that worked wonders.

Still, it wouldn’t be a Penn State game without some gripes about the coaches.  Still under utilizing Hackenberg is the big red flag.  Short passes and screens only work for so long and you have to wonder when there will be a little bit more creativity with offensive coordinator John Donovan’s play calling.  Also, I want to know how much input James Franklin has now in regards to play calling.

The weirdest sequence of the night I thought happened in the third quarter.  The Nittany Lions had a 3rd and 1 at the Rutgers 41 and they called a screen pass that went nowhere.  Then Christian Hackenberg couldn’t sneak it the yard and they turned it over on downs.  The running game was working so well, don’t get cute.  Give it to Lynch or Barkley and they’ll pick up that yard.

We might need to be worried about more offers for Bob Shoop to go elsewhere this off-season.  The man continues to call a great defense and they could be better than last year’s by season’s end.  The defense will continue to keep Penn State in every game this season.

Props to James Franklin for getting his first home conference win too.  The team looks light years better than it did against Temple and they hopefully will keep the momentum going.

Grade: B+