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Penn State Football: Iowa first test for Lions’ offense

By Collin Wieder

STATE COLLEGE, PA - SEPTEMBER 16: Trace McSorley #9 of the Penn State Nittany Lions looks to pass against the Georgia State Panthers at Beaver Stadium on September 16, 2017 in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
STATE COLLEGE, PA - SEPTEMBER 16: Trace McSorley #9 of the Penn State Nittany Lions looks to pass against the Georgia State Panthers at Beaver Stadium on September 16, 2017 in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) /
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Penn State football’s offense sees its first real threat in the Iowa Hawkeyes this Saturday. How will the Nittany Lions fare?

Penn State football’s Joe Moorhead puts his brilliant offensive mind to its first true test of the 2017 season Saturday against Iowa. The Hawkeyes enter at 3-0 and carry a decent defense through the first three games.

Iowa shut down Wyoming’s Josh Allen in week one and a blossoming North Texas offense in game three. Still, the Hawkeyes needed a strong offensive effort to down rival Iowa State in week two. Either way, the defense provided more difficulty than any other defense Penn State has played.

For instance, Pitt should’ve been a nice test, but the Panthers clearly struggled to stop even an inconsistent Nittany Lions attack. Last week, they gave up bucket loads of points to Oklahoma State, so this week will be a better barometer. In total the defense is in the top third of the nation in points allowed per game.

First, the Nittany Lions need to show they can cleanly operate in the passing game. In that win against Pitt, the air attack hit a snag and struggled to complete easy throws. Trace McSorley needs to keep his cool and play well against a secondary that already has four interceptions and 14 pass break-ups.

In addition, the run defense is allowing just 4.1 yards per carry, and it all starts with linebacker Josey Jewell. He leads the team in tackles (26), sacks (2) and second in tackles for loss (2.5).

He’ll be chasing Saquon Barkley and McSorley all across the field. Beyond him, it’s a group effort for the most part. Iowa’s production goes across most of the defense and doesn’t come from one particular player outside of Jewell.

Although Allen and Wyoming didn’t have much help and North Texas comes from a group of five conference, Iowa’s defense showed promise. It showed a potential to be pretty strong. Not to mention, this group is confident at 3-0. Since it’s the Big Ten opener for both teams, the motivation is there.

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This team will clearly not be the best team Penn State will play, but it’s the first test for this offense. If they can rise above like the Nittany Lions’ talent says they should, this game will be over by the third quarter.

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