Penn State Football vs Iowa: Nittany Lions’ reasons for optimism, to worry

Penn State Football’s Reason for Optimism – The Wide Receivers

By this point, most people should realize that Jahan Dotson is one of the best receivers in college football, but his counterparts are also very talented.

Throughout his first season and a half, Parker Washington has shown great ability to be able to make plays with the ball in his hands. With Dotson commanding so much attention from defenses, that opens up opportunities for Washington to get the ball in his hands and make something happen.

Also, KeAndre Lambert-Smith has shown some very good flashes, such as a great running catch on a third down conversion against Wisconsin. He was also very instrumental in catching screens through the first few games. They have gone away from that a little in the past couple of weeks, but maybe they try to bring some of that back this week to get the ball out of Clifford’s hands early.

Surprisingly, both Washington and Lambert-Smith average more yards per catch than Jahan Dotson does. Washington averages 13.2 yards per catch and Lambert-Smith averages 17.2, while Dotson only averages 12.7.

Another noteworthy component is the fact that Jahan Dotson has successfully completed two passes over the past three games. This is something that the Hawkeyes will have to spend time preparing for, and it will surely be on the forefront of their mind any time Dotson goes in motion or gets the ball in his hands on a handoff or backwards pass.

If the running game does struggle, the passing game will need to carry the load. Iowa has been good against the pass so far this season, but they have not yet had to take on a trio as good as Penn State will send out there, and they especially have not yet gone against a receiver as talented as Jahan Dotson.

If Penn State Football goes into Iowa City and knocks off the Hawkeyes, this group of wide receivers will be a big reason why.