Catching Up

Woo! We beat Penn State! Some things to take away from the game:

Offense:

• Antonio Pittman got his twenty carries, and responded with 110 yards and a touchdown. Let's keep doing that.
• Seeing Chris Wells run onto the field has to be demoralizing for a defense. It's third and short, everyone knows a run up the middle is coming, but there's nothing the defense can do about it. Someday, Tressel will run play action on third and short, and it will work beautifully because everyone's trying to stop Beanie.
• Troy Smith didn't look very good. The Penn State defense had a lot to do with it, and they did a good job getting some pressure on him. The weather also influenced it, I think, as several times Troy just missed with his throws.
• I think I'm developing a prejudice against tight ends. It seemed like every time we threw to a tight end, Troy either missed him or he dropped it. Let's not use tight ends anymore. H-backs and fullbacks are fine, however.
• All the increased attention on Anthony Gonzalez has been and will continue to be great for Brian Robiskie. On any given play, at least three guys are dedicated to stopping Ted Ginn and Gonzo, which opens things up for Robiskie.
• Hopefully we'll see more options and swing passes against Iowa. I think Tressel pulled the option from the playbook due to the rain, but he added the swing pass, which was very effective one time in particular. Pittman's great when you get him on the outside. He can outrun linebackers and defensive ends, and he breaks tackles from defensive backs.
• Awesomeness:

Courtesy of Buckeye Commentary

Defense:

• James Laurinaitis might be my hero. At a certain point, creating turnovers stops being about luck and starts being about anticipation and instincts. The guy is just always around the ball when he needs to be.
• Malcolm Jenkins is rapidly becoming great. Good technique, good instincts, and he's very physical. He should probably hold onto the ball all the way into the endzone next time, though.
• Our D-line is great. Quinn Pitcock is always double-teamed and routinely gets in the backfield anyway. Patterson continues to improve, and all the defensive ends are playing very well, especially Vernon Gholston. They're still getting held a lot, though. I don't know what they can do about that. A joy buzzer under the jersey, maybe?
• Still looking for a linebacker combination that works. John Kerr and Marcus Freeman looked better, but not good. Curtis Terry should probably be starting. Ross Homan's close, but not quite ready to start. Hopefully a couple guys can step up, and quickly.
• For all the problems the defense has defending the run, they have yet to give up a rushing touchdown. They don't allow many touchdowns, period. The defense steps it up in the red zone.
  
• Quick special teams note: It was wet with a crappy field. I'm not going to draw any conclusions about our punting and field goal kicking. They looked shaky, but they get a pass this week.

Penn State:

• Dan Connor was PSU's best linebacker on Saturday, and he was very good. Paul Posluszny was decent, but not impressive. He seemed a little slow to me.
  
• Tony Hunt was excellent. He's a quality back.
• Anthony Morelli's not a bad QB, but the game should not be placed in his hands at any point in the game. He's not going to beat the opponent, and Penn State should make sure he doesn't beat them. He'll be a good quarterback before all is said and done, though.