Penn State Football: 3 keys to beating Michigan State

Penn State’s secondary vs Michigan State’s offense

For the third straight week, Penn State football will face an opponent with uncertainty at the quarterback position.

Starting quarterback Rocky Lombardi left last week’s game after appearing to hit his head on the ground after being sacked in the second quarter. Before being injured, the junior quarterback was five of eleven passing for only 33 yards and an interception. Freshman Payton Thorne entered the game and threw for 147 yards and an interception, while being sacked twice.

Regardless of who gets the nod at quarterback, the Spartans rank last in the conference and 120th out of 127 FBS teams with 17 points per game. Junior Rocky Lombardi has had a tough season, throwing for 1,090 yards and eight touchdowns to nine interceptions.

Penn State football’s secondary has been dominant over this two game win streak, holding opponents to 122 yards per game in that span. For the season, the Nittany Lions rank second to only Wisconsin in passing yards allowed per game with 191. Outside of the Ohio State game and one half against Maryland, the secondary has been good, with the one knock being they are not forcing enough turnovers. They are tied for last in the conference with only two interceptions thus far.

Senior cornerback Tariq Castro-Fields has missed the last four games due to injury, and once again James Franklin was optimistic in this week’s press conference that he would return against the Spartans. With Fields out, the young guys have stepped up in a big way for defensive coordinator Brent Pry. Redshirt freshman Joey Porter Jr. was awarded Big Ten freshman of the week honors after Penn State’s victory over Rutgers in week seven.

Penn State will have to be weary of where standout wide receiver Jailen Nailor is at all times, as he ranks 12th in the nation with 20.8 yards per reception. It should be a good battle when he is lined up across from Porter Jr.