How good is PSU after defeating Auburn on the road? That and more in the Penn State mailbag
Our latest mailbag of the season is here and we have the answers to your questions. As a reminder, if you have any questions send them to psu_mailbag@centredaily.com for inclusion in the mailbag in the future. From big picture to small minutiae, we’ll answer your queries about the Penn State football program.
What’s Ji’Ayir Brown’s upside within the defense this season? Does he have a chance to be a first round pick next year? —Eric
Brown is on the verge of his second breakout season after bursting onto the scene last year. He established himself as one of the best ballhawking safeties in the country, tying for the FBS lead in interceptions. He told me in the summer that he wanted to lead the nation by himself this year and is already on his way to breaking out to an even higher level.
He’s a versatile weapon that Manny Diaz uses in coverage, in run support and as a blitzer. He’s already picked up a strip-sack, the first sack of his career, along with an interception. Brown lamented after the game that he hadn’t been thrown at much in the first two games and was glad he finally had the chance to pick the ball off. I’d be surprised if he isn’t universally viewed as one of the best defensive players in the conference by the end of the year.
His draft stock should take off in a similar way if he keeps playing like he is now. If you’d have asked me last season, I’d have said Brown would’ve gone in the third or fourth round of the 2022 NFL Draft had he declared. Now I’d guess that’s much closer to the second round and I’ve already talked to NFL scouts that are glowing about him. He’s going to interview well during the draft process and his only flaw might be his straight line speed, which should be fine. Brown should be one of the first few safeties off the board this spring.
What are your expectations for the running game moving forward? —Cody
I got this question last week but now seems like a pertinent time to address it. The Penn State running game took a step against Ohio, earning its first 100-yard rusher since November of 2020, but it still came with the caveat of coming against a MAC opponent that isn’t good or nearly athletic enough to stop the Nittany Lions. Well, Auburn is and the Tigers couldn’t stop them either. I did not expect Penn State to light up Jordan-Hare Stadium with its rushing attack like it did on Saturday. That changes the outlook for the running game moving forward.
The Tigers are athletic and good enough defensively to halt any middling offensive line or running back in their tracks. It sure seems like Penn State isn’t middling in either facet at this point. Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen are a dynamic duo at running back with both boasting the ability to earn extra yards with their power. The former uses his speed to break away while the latter uses his balance to stay up and break off big gains. The offensive line paved the way for the backs, while the tight ends contributed to opening up those rushing lanes further down the field.
There are plenty of other good run defenses on Penn State’s schedule — namely Michigan — but the Nittany Lions seem to have the ability to run on anyone. That game in Ann Arbor will be their next test but for the time being it seems like the rushing attack is going to be impactful the rest of the way.
Soooo, is Penn State like ... good? —Josh
I think so. I said during our record predictions that I thought this was going to go in one of two directions. Either Penn State would start off hot and 11-1 was a very real possibility or it would lose two of its first three and 7-5 would be the most likely outcome. Well, the Nittany Lions are now 3-0 and have rectified many of the issues that have plagued them over the last couple of years.
As I touched on above, the running game looks like it’s going to be a very real threat that opposing teams have to deal with moving forward and the offensive line seems to be taking that step as well. The defense is really good, really aggressive and really fun. It should be up for any task, including the one it will face when it matches up with Ohio State in October.
The real question that will dictate how far this team goes is simple — how good is Sean Clifford going to be the rest of the season? That’s going to dictate everything. If Clifford is the quarterback he was against Purdue and even Ohio then Penn State’s ceiling lowers. That quarterback was off target on many of his throws, made questionable decisions and too often put his receivers in harm’s way with errant passes. If he’s the guy who stayed calm and composed against Auburn, well, that’s a different story. That iteration of Clifford was in complete command of the offense. He took a big hit early from Owen Pappoe and bounced right back up, unfazed by the collision or the environment around him. He was not perfect, but he was very good and in control. I don’t know if that’s going to be the case every week, but if it is then Penn State is going to easily eclipse double digit wins this season.
That’s it for this week’s mailbag. Don’t forget to email us at psu_mailbag@centredaily.com to get your questions answered. We’ll have you covered this Saturday for Penn State’s game against Central Michigan, so be sure to head to centredaily.com for all of the coverage you need.
