2010 Penn State Football Predictions
The Penn State Nittany Lions finished the 2009-10 season 11-2, capping it off with a hard-fought win over LSU in the Capital One Bowl. It was still a small step back from what the 2008 squad was able to accomplish. That team earned a share of the Big Ten title and represented the conference in the Rose Bowl. It will be far from easy for Penn State to contend for a Big Ten championship, and more, this season. After a warm up game against Youngstown State, the Nittany Lions travel to Alabama to take on the defending national champs. We’ll get a lot better sense of what this team is made of following that contest. The schedule makers did the Nittany Lions no favors in Big Ten play either as they must travel to both Iowa City and Columbus. Quarterback Daryll Clark rewrote the record books at Penn State, but he is now gone. This means that the success of the Nittany Lions will largely depend on how well his successor performs. Looking for a place to bet on college football? Bet your college football picks at BetUS where our readers can get a special $500 match bonus!
Offense: Kevin Newsome, who appeared in 10 games in mop up duty last season, is the early favorite to replace Clark. Newsome appears to be a better runner than Clark, and that could lead Joe Paterno to implementing a more run-heavy attack than we have seen in recent years, similar to the one he conjured up in 2005 when the Nittany Lions won the Big Ten. One thing we can count on is a heavy dose of running back Evan Royster. He followed up his tremendous 2008 season by rushing for 1,169 yards and six scores in 2009. When the Nittany Lions do take to the air, they will be looking in the direction of Derek Moye, who is coming off a 785-yard, six-touchdown year. The offensive line could be a problem. The coaching staff tried a lot of different players at different spots this spring and Paterno wasn’t impressed with what he saw.
Defense: Penn State boasted the No. 1 ranked scoring defense in the Big Ten last season, allowing opponents only 12.2 points per game. It also ranked No. 2 in the total defense category, allowing only 274.5 yards per game. Penn State must replace five players who started in the front seven of their Capital One Bowl win, but there is plenty of talent stepping in for the defense to remain stout. Nose tackle Ollie Ogbu returns as a highly regarded run-stuffer, and Jack Crawford and Eric Latimore appear poised for breakout seasons on the outside. Crawford finished with 5.5 sacks in 2009. The Nittany Lions should also get a boost from the return of linebacker Michael Mauti. He was being hyped as a star before he endured a season-ending injury last summer. With three of four starters back in the secondary, I see no issues across the back.
Prediction: 4th Big Ten -The defense will remain one of the best in the league, but the offense won’t be as dangerous without Clark. Also, the Nittany Lions must go to Iowa and Ohio State. The Hawkeyes have had Penn State’s number and the Buckeyes won in Happy Valley last season. I expect another strong season from Paterno’s boys, but one that doesn’t end in a Big Ten title. College football odds makers have listed Penn State at +5000 to win the BCS title.
See how I have the rest of the conference stacking up in my 2010 Big Ten football predictions. I have also predicted all the FBS conference champions in my 2010 college football predictions article.
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