Penn State Football: Reviewing the year on offense
Penn State football put up some fantastic number on offense during the 2017 season.
It was another successful season for Penn State on the offensive side of the ball in 2017. Led by a star running back and a star quarterback, the Nittany Lions proved to be one of the toughest teams in the country to stop.
Penn State averaged 41 points a game and finished in the top-10 of that category. The Nittany Lions scored at least 30 points11 times and scored over 20 points in every game. Against the vaunted Washington Husky defense in the Fiesta Bowl Penn State racked up 35 points.
As for total yards, the Nittany Lions finished 19th with an average of 460.3 yards a game. Their 545 yards in the Fiesta Bowl were the most allowed by Washington during the season and also set a new Penn State bowl record.
Penn State entered the 2017 season with Saquon Barkley, the best running back in college football. Opposing defenses built their game plans around stopping Barkley, so that opened up the passing attack for quarterback Trace McSorley.
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McSorley threw for over 3,500 yards with 28 passing touchdowns and was a cornerstone for the potent offense. He was very effective at spreading the ball around, as four different players grabbed at least 53 receptions.
Senior receiver DaeSean Hamilton, who saw his numbers drop over the last two years, bounced back and led the Nittany Lions with 857 receiving yards. He tied with tight end Mike Gesicki with nine touchdowns. Gesicki led the team with 57 receptions.
Juwan Johnson, the most likely candidate to be the team’s top receiver next year, finished second on the team with 701 yards. Johnson’s six-foot-four frame and speed made him a dangerous downfield threat for McSorley.
Running back Saquon Barkley showed his versatility as a play-maker by pulling in 54 receptions for 632 yards and three touchdowns. Of course, running the ball is Barkley’s forte. Although running was tough at times due to all of the attention, he still racked up 1,271 yards on the ground with 18 touchdowns.
Problems on the offensive line plagued Penn State’s ability to run the ball at times, so the Nittany Lions surprisingly finished 59th in the country in rushing offense.
Outside of Barkley, Penn State struggled to get production out of the rest of its running backs. Miles Sanders managed just 191 yards, while Andre Robinson recorded just 55.
It was actually McSorley who was second on the team with 491 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns. Backup quarterback Tommy Stevens added 190 rushing yards and four touchdowns.
Next: DaeSean Hamilton season in review
Overall, it was a very successful season for the Nittany Lions on offense. The rushing yards were lower than expected, but the points still piled up. The performance in the Fiesta Bowl against one of the top defenses in the nation validated Penn State as one of the most potent offenses around.