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Penn State Football vs Indiana: 5 Nittany Lions who need to step up

By Nick Kreiser

Sep 25, 2021; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions offensive linesman Juice Scruggs (70) rings the victory bell following the completion of the game against the Villanova Wildcats at Beaver Stadium. Penn State defeated Villanova 38-17. Mandatory Credit: Matthew OHaren-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 25, 2021; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions offensive linesman Juice Scruggs (70) rings the victory bell following the completion of the game against the Villanova Wildcats at Beaver Stadium. Penn State defeated Villanova 38-17. Mandatory Credit: Matthew OHaren-USA TODAY Sports /
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As Penn State Football hosts the Indiana Hoosiers under the lights in Beaver Stadium, there are some key players that need to make a positive impact for the Nittany Lions.

Obviously Penn State Football’s stars need to play like stars, and the quarterback position is always vital to a team’s success, but the theme of this game is “role players” stepping up.

Not role players in the sense that they are not starters, but in the sense that they can sometimes get overlooked and maybe do not have the same level of production as some others at their position. There are also a lot of transfers in this group.

The guys on this list have all done, at the very least, a serviceable job so far this year, but they are guys that, if they took their game to the next level, this team’s play as a whole would also jump to the next level.

Here’s a look at the players Penn State Football needs to have big games in order to beat Indiana

Eric Wilson/Juice Scruggs (G)

It is quite obvious that this Penn State Football team has not been very good at running the ball so far this season. Though there are many reasons for this, such as tight end blocking and Sean Clifford not making proper reads on RPO’s and read options, which are pointed out in this great piece by For The Blogy, the offensive line is still a big reason for the lack of success running the ball.

Even though the struggles to run the ball are an all-around type deal, they particularly have issues running the ball between the tackles. That is why guards Eric Wilson and Juice Scruggs are so important to help turn this running game around, and it starts with the Indiana matchup.

Not only is the guards’ ability to get a push up front crucial to create running lanes up the middle, but often times, a guard will ‘pull’ on an outside run, to get out in front of the ball carrier as a lead blocker.

Obviously a lot of things need to change to help improve this team’s running game, including the entire offensive line blocking better, but if Wilson and Scruggs collectively can set the tone at the guard positions, it would be a great start.

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