Nittany Lions need to face on-field adversity

By Jeff Rice

There can be no progress without struggle.

Frederick Douglass, the great American abolitionist, said so more than 100 years ago.

Michael Robinson, the great Penn State quarterback, applied the same thought to a far less weighty issue, and led the Nittany Lions back to prominence in 2005.

Heading into this season, the question was how the young, talented but inexperienced players that dot the current Penn State lineup would respond to adversity?

After last week’s games, the question became: When will they face any?

Florida International, which tip-toed into Beaver Stadium after a winless 2006 season, was not expected to provide any adversity, and the Golden Panthers delivered. The most harrowing moment for Penn State last week came when coach Joe Paterno, on his remarkable jog from the end zone tunnel to the 50-yard line, nearly became entangled in a camera extension cord.

Buffalo, which the Nittany Lions will face one week from Saturday, allowed 559 yards in the first 54 minutes in a 38-3 loss to Rutgers last week. The Bulls, who were 2-10 a year ago, visit Temple on Saturday.

And suddenly, the Big Ten opener in the Big House looks a lot less daunting. Michigan’s offense, as expected, was balanced and efficient during last week’s game against Appalachian State. Its defense was either caught off guard, physically outmatched or some combination of the two during a 34-32 shocker of a loss to the Mountaineers. Special teams, long a Wolverine wild card, had two field goals blocked.

When the Nittany Lions invade Ann Arbor on Sept. 22, the defense will still have its hands full with Chad Henne, Mike Hart and a terrifically balanced offense. And eight straight defeats is a mental barrier that should not be discounted. But the chinks in Michigan’s defensive armor have been exposed for the world to see.

Then there’s Saturday’s opponent, the barely-Fighting Irish of Notre Dame — or so the national media would have us believe. A year ago, Charlie Weis’ team handed the Nittany Lions their most lopsided loss in four seasons, a 41-17 embarrassment on national television.

Last week, however, a much younger team looked dazed and punchless during a 33-3 loss to Georgia Tech. Although it’s doubtful Notre Dame could be that abysmal for a second straight week, the Irish will have to make monumental strides to steal a win on the road, and significant strides to even stay in the game.

Very little was learned about Penn State last week, and this week might reveal little more. Will Notre Dame’s tweaked 3-4 defensive front, which lost end Victor Abiamiri to the NFL and Derrell Hand (albeit temporarily) to a prostitution charge, pose a healthy challenge for the Nittany Lions’ reshuffled offensive line? The Irish allowed 265 yards rushing last week.

Will Notre Dame’s massive but inexperienced offensive line, which returned just two starters, be able to handle Penn State’s young defensive line? Irish tailbacks rushed for 64 yards on 29 carries Saturday and Irish quarterbacks were sacked nine times.

There is no denying that, for all its considerable talent, the 2005 Big Ten-title winning team was fueled all season by adversity, be it the dismal 2003 and 2004 campaigns, Arrowgate and other off-field incidents or the slow September start (down 23-7 at Northwestern).

The 2007 group, which has the same sort of talent, has already had its fill of off-field adversity. It will receive a reminder of that each home Sunday morning, when it returns to the stadium to clean the bleachers.

On-field adversity, as it does with every team every season, is going to catch this team at some point, whether it’s Saturday, in Ann Arbor or later in the season. How the Nittany Lions respond to that first taste will be an excellent predictor of how far they will go this season.

The sooner it arrives, the better.

Jeff Rice covers Penn State football for the Centre Daily Times. He can be reached at 231-4609 or jrice@centredaily.com.