2009 NCAA - Penn State
The Nittany Lions have won 40 games in the last four seasons, and expect Joe Paterno to extend his lead in the head-to-head coaching battle with Bobby Bowden for most career wins this fall. Almost unapologetically, JoePa scheduled four non-con home games against teams that cannot compete (all apologies to much-improved Temple) for 60 minutes. Before even going into any PSU personnel, you can glance at the schedule and see 10 wins. A two-game road stretch to Michigan and Northwestern to end November could be tricky if they are caught overlooking those two to the Nov. 7 showdown against Ohio State at home. The season ends on Nov. 21 with a trip to East Lansing, and an undefeated season could be on the line if PSU can get by Illinois and Ohio State.
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That's because fifth-year senior Daryll Clark is back to run the offense and stud RB Evan Royster is back to tote the rock. The top three wideouts are gone, but there is plenty of young kids with size eager to fill in. There are some line losses on offense, but the quality depth is there for the Nittany Lions to reload up front. The secondary lost four starters, which could bode trouble for the Lions. But no credible passing attacks invade Happy Valley (again, apologies to Greg Paulus at Syracuse) in September, so the first test will likely come Oct. 3 at Illinois. |
| ASK the bookie? - JoePa was favored in every regular-season game last fall, and a case could be made for it happening again in 2009. Will they cover eight times, last last season, or go over the total eight times? That's not nearly as likely - especially with the debut of a new secondary. Expect some high-scoring September tilts but once Big Ten play settles in, all of these coaches know each other and their tendencies (JoePa doesn't face Purdue and its new coach, Danny Hope). And this year, as long as Penn State is unbeaten and the schools in bigger leagues like the Big 12 and SEC start beating each other up, JoePa will play for wins and to stay healthy, and not necessarily covers on the big tariffs. |
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