Penn State football offensive position grades through Week 2
Penn State Football needs to quickly regroup to turn around the momentum of a disastrous 0-2 start to the 2020 season
Penn State Football is off to a nightmare start this season falling to 0-2 after Saturday night’s defeat to Ohio State 38-25.
The 0-2 start all but crushed any hopes the Nittany Lions might have had of making the college football playoff this year, and led to the Lions falling out of the top 25 for the first time since 2016.
Penn State football still has a lot to play for, including potentially a New Year’s day bowl game, but lets take a deep dive into how each offensive position group has fared to this point.
Quarterback
Grade: C+
Sean Clifford has had an up and down start to the campaign, however costly turnovers are the story for the redshirt junior. C
lifford is completing 65% of his passes, for 519 yards and six touchdowns while rushing for 124 yards and a score. The bad has been three interceptions, two of which led to 10 points for Indiana in week 1. In year two, under a new offensive coordinator, many Penn State fans expected Clifford to take a big step and unfortunately that just has not been the case.
With a young wide receivers corps and running backs Journey Brown and Noah Cain sidelined for the season, Clifford will need to be better if the Nittany Lions are going to turn there season around. Clifford looks as if he is quick to tuck it down and use his legs, potentially leaving some plays out there in the passing game. It is fair to question if this is Clifford’s ceiling or if this offense is just yet to click under new offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca.
Running Backs
Grade: C
In all fairness, this is a very tough group to really judge through two weeks.
Going into 2020, the Penn State football running backs room was widely regarded as one of, if not the best groups in the country.
After Journey Brown was diagnosed with an unknown medical condition, and Noah Cain hurt his ankle on the first drive of the season, this group looks a lot different.
Devyn Ford has been the lead back through two games, rushing for 105 yards on 28 carries. Freshmen Keyvone Lee and Coziah Holmes made an impact week 1, however were non existent in Saturday’s game with Ohio State.
Penn State figured to rely heavily on the run game this season, and the absence of a consistent rushing attack is a big contributor to the 0-2 start. The running backs have also been noticeably absent in the passing game as well, with only six receptions through two games.
Wide Receivers
Grade: B+
The biggest question mark coming into this season for Penn State football was the young wide receivers corps after KJ Hamler left early for the NFL draft.
Thus far, this group has been a pleasant surprise, highlighted by junior Jahan Dotson’s spectacular performance against the Buckeyes. Dotson caught 8 passes for 144 yards and 3 touchdowns,
highlighted by a dazzling one-handed catch down the sideline for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.
Freshman Parker Washington was a surprise starter in the initial depth chart, but has rewarded Penn State with six receptions for 85 yards and shows a noticeable burst with the ball in his hands after the catch.
The negative in this group has been the lack of emergence by a third wideout, as Daniel George and freshman Keandre Lambert-Smith have only combined for seven receptions for 59 yards.
Tight End
Grade: B
It was a pleasant surprise when star tight end Pat Freiermuth decided to come back this season, as many believe he could have been drafted as early as the first round in April’s NFL draft.
The junior is far and away Penn States best option in the passing game, however through two games he has not quite put up the numbers many expected.
Freiermuth has caught 10 passes for 106 yards and a touchdown, however was mostly non-existent against the Buckeyes.
Coming from Minnesota, offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca did not highlight the tight end in his offense and it is fair to question whether or not Pat is being targeted enough in the passing game for the Nittany Lions to be successful.
Without a true game breaker on the outside, Freiermuth should not dissapear to the tune of three catches vs Ohio State. The lack of an emergence from any of the younger tight ends on the roster has been a disappointment as well.
Offensive Line
Grade: D +
James franklin went out and brought new offensive line coach Phil Trautwein to Happy Valley in the offseason to lead a group many thought might be the best in Franklin’s tenure at Penn State. This group returned four starters from 2019, and thus far has been a major disappointment and has led to some of the offensive struggles. Penn State football ran the ball 27 times for a mere 44 yards against Ohio State, while also surrendering five sacks and seven tackles for loss. They faired better week one vs the Hoosiers, however the rushing stats are a bit misleading due to quarterback Sean Clifford escaping the pocket and rushing for 119 yards. Clifford was constantly under duress in the pocket Saturday night, while the line was unable to provide any push up front in the run game. Winning the time of possession battle was going to be key for the Nittany Lions, and the inability to run the ball and keep Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields on the sidelines was a big reason for the defeat.