Here’s 5 things to watch in Saturday’s Penn State vs. Illinois college football game
The Penn State Nittany Lions (3-5) are looking to end their regular season on a high note after winning three consecutive games when they take on the Illinois Fighting Illini (2-5) at 5:30 p.m. Saturday (FS1) at Beaver Stadium.
Here are five things to keep an eye on:
PSU’S FIRST-HALF ENERGY
After two strong all-around performances in wins over Michigan and Rutgers in back-to-back weeks, it appeared that Penn State’s slow starts were a thing of the past.
But against Michigan State last week, a poor first-half performance again plagued the team.
The Nittany Lions scored first — on a 24-yard field goal from junior kicker Jake Pinegar midway through the first quarter — but they found themselves down 21-10 at halftime. Spartans first-time starting quarterback Payton Thorne had his way with Penn State’s secondary in the first half. By halftime, he’d already totaled 202 yards through the air on 11-13 passing for three touchdowns and an interception.
Penn State was again surrendering up big plays — like Thorne’s 45-yard touchdown pass to receiver Jalen Nailor early in the second quarter and Thorne’s 26-yard touchdown pass to receiver Tre’Von Morgan with about six minutes left in the first half.
At the half, Michigan State had totaled 242 total yards of offense, compared to 173 for Penn State.
Still, this time, the Nittany Lions successfully turned things around to dominate the second half and win the game. They haven’t always been able to pull off comebacks, though. During Penn State’s first five games of the season, it trailed by double digits to all five opponents — and as a result, it went 0-5 in that stretch.
Illinois fired head coach Lovie Smith on Sunday. And now, the Fighting Illini are also without their leading receiver, Josh Imatorbhebhe, who announced Thursday that he’s entering the NFL Draft and won’t play in Illinois’ game against Penn State.
If the Nittany Lions can solve the problems that have led to their slow starts, then Penn State might be able to put away Illinois early on Saturday.
PENN STATE’S RUNNING GAME
What led Penn State to turn its season around after an 0-5 start was its running game. The Nittany Lions had finally found ways to successfully run the ball in wins versus Michigan and Rutgers.
Last weekend against Michigan State, though, Penn State’s ground game wasn’t as strong as it had been in recent weeks. The Nittany Lions ran for just 119 yards on 40 attempts — good for only 3 yards per carry — versus the Spartans.
This performance was much less dominant than Penn State’s 254-rushing yard outing against Michigan in Week 6 and its 248 yards on the ground against Rutgers in Week 7. In both of those contests, it was freshman running back Keyvone Lee who led the team’s rushing attack — running for 134 yards versus the Wolverines and 95 yards versus the Scarlet Knights.
But Lee wasn’t effective against the Spartans. He only had 31 rushing yards on 12 carries (2.6 yards per rush). It also didn’t help that sophomore running back Devyn Ford — who, at one point this season, was expected to be the Nittany Lions’ feature back — didn’t play because of an undisclosed injury.
Luckily for Penn State, Illinois has had its fair share of struggles against the run this season.
In its 28-10 loss to Northwestern last week, the Fighting Illini allowed the Wildcats to run for 411 yards. Northwestern finished the contest with two running backs to run for over 140 yards in Evan Hull (149) and Cam Porter (142).
Illinois is ranked 114th out of 127 FBS teams in run defense, allowing opponents 226.9 yards on the ground per game. Keep an eye on whether Penn State can take advantage of this and have success running the ball.
PSU WR JAHAN DOTSON
While Penn State’s running backs didn’t have much success last week against Michigan State, its receivers carried the load on offense — especially junior receiver Jahan Dotson.
The 5-foot-11, 182-pound Nazareth native had two quiet games in the Nittany Lions’ wins over Michigan in Week 6 (three catches for 30 yards) and Rutgers in Week 7 (four catches for 30 yards) leading up the matchup versus Michigan State.
But against the Spartans, Dotson was electric again. He finished the contest with eight catches for 108 yards (his fourth 100-yard receiving game of the season) and returned a punt 81 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.
Dotson’s punt-return touchdown extended the Nittany Lions’ lead to 15 with 11:24 to go in the contest and all but ended any hope of a comeback for the Spartans.
After being Penn State’s third receiving option in 2019 — when he finished the season with 488 receiving yards and five touchdowns through 13 games — Dotson has blossomed into one of the best receivers in the Big Ten this year. He leads the Big Ten in receiving yards (695), is second in receptions (46) and is tied for third in receiving touchdowns (six).
Illinois has been a middle-of-the-road team this season in pass defense — the Fighting Illini rank No. 53 in the country in opponent passing yards per game, allowing opponents 224.3 yards through the air per contest. So, Dotson should have an opportunity to have a strong outing.
Dotson has become a must-watch player in the conference this season, and has a chance to make a statement in Penn State’s regular-season finale on Saturday.
HOW WILL PSU CONTINUE TO USE TWO QBS?
Penn State’s use of two quarterbacks has been surprisingly successful.
When redshirt junior quarterback Sean Clifford struggled through the Nittany Lions’ first five games, redshirt sophomore quarterback Will Levis was implemented more heavily into the offense — he even started in Week 4 against Iowa. Since then, head coach James Franklin and Co. have utilized both quarterbacks in different ways. And it’s been effective.
In Penn State’s last two wins over Rutgers and Michigan State, Levis was used early and often in drives, instead of only being used in short-yardage situations on third and fourth downs. Heading into the game against the Spartans, the 6-foot-3, 222-pound Connecticut native had run 23 times total in back-to-back games — versus Michigan and Rutgers — and not attempted a single pass in either contest.
That changed against Michigan State, though. Levis attempted three passes versus the Spartans and completed all three, including a 36-yard toss to Dotson.
Entering Levis in the game already allows Clifford to endure less wear and tear on his body, but letting Levis throw adds an element of surprise that could open things up for the Nittany Lions’ offense.
Clifford, on the other hand, has been turned into a game manager. The 6-foot-2, 217-pound Ohio native has been taking fewer shots down the field in Penn State’s last three games than he was earlier in the season.
Instead, the focus seems to be on Clifford throwing short passes and getting the ball in the hands of his playmakers — like Dotson and freshman receiver Parker Washington. This has significantly reduced the risk of turnovers (Clifford has thrown just one interception in the Nittany Lions’ last three games, while he’d thrown eight in the first five games).
It’ll be interesting to see if the two quarterbacks are used the same way they were last week when Penn State takes on Illinois on Saturday.
PENN STATE’S O-LINE PLAY
Of course, it doesn’t matter who’s behind center for Penn State if its offensive line doesn’t perform well. The play of the line has been a strength for the Nittany Lions in their past three games, though.
After giving up 20 sacks through Penn State’s 0-5 start, the unit has surrendered only three sacks in the team’s past three games. The Nittany Lions didn’t give up a single sack against Michigan State last weekend.
This turnaround by the offensive line has helped the running game find its footing and it’s allowed Clifford to be less panicked in the pocket. It’s no coincidence that the Nittany Lions highest rushing yards total in regulation — 254 yards against Michigan in Week 6 — resulted in a two-score victory. And it’s also no surprise that when Clifford was barely pressured last week versus the Spartans, the Nittany Lions won in dominant fashion.
All the shuffling of players on the line that first-year offensive line coach Phil Trautwein has done seems to have paid off, as the unit has been gelling in recent weeks.
Illinois has struggled to get pressure on opposing quarterbacks all season — the Fighting Illini rank 82nd in the country in sacks per game with 1.86 per contest.
If Penn State’s offensive line can dominate in the trenches on Saturday, the Nittany Lions’ offense could have its way with the Fighting Illini defense en route to what could be a fairly easy victory.
