PSU Football: Defense and Offense Both Step Up in Blowout Win Over Wisconsin

There really is no need for a recap for this game...I can sum it up in two words: COMPLETE DOMINANCE!

Offense, defense, and even special teams for Penn State played outstanding.  I did not see one kick return for Wisconsin go past the 30.  This may have been one reason for the blowout win.  Penn State's average field position was like their own 47, while Wisconsin's was closer to their own 20.  Let's put the game into perspective.

Offense: Royster, although he did not have a big day and averaged just under five yards per carry, made a couple of big runs; breaking tackle after tackle to get seven yards and or a first down.

Clark played like a champ.  He spread the ball around to his star receivers, who ended up being open a lot.  Williams played very well, even though he had a drop and a muffed punt in the first quarter, and Clark had a fumble...just 1st quarter jitters.

Butler caught a TD pass and Norwood was very effective in his first week back.  Even backup receivers like McDonald and Brackett caught a couple of big passes.  Although this game was not as balanced offensively, both the run and the pass were successful against this physical Wisconsin team.

Penn State rushed for just over 100 yards as a team, while they passed for nearly 300 yards.  I expected Penn State to come out conservative in this game, but they did just the opposite.

Penn State football, before this year, was more of a run, run, pass, run, pass, and so on offense.  This game, it was pass, pass, pass, run, pass, run, run, pass, pass, pass, pass offense.  PSU came out aggressive, and after a sloppy first quarter they were able to keep drives going and score early, which took the crowd out of the game.

Although our offense didn't have an outstanding amount of total yards, the play of the special teams, the defense, and field position helped PSU's offense pile on the points.

Defense: What more can I say about this defense than that they played this huge Wisconsin offense tough, and won the battle of rush and pass defense.

Everyone expected Wisconsin to be able to run all over the Penn State defense all game, but Wisconsin was only able to rush well in the first quarter.  Wisconsin was able to be very physical and get seven or eight yards on a couple of rushes.  However, PSU's defense held Wisconsin's rushing to minimal or no gain on many second and third downs.

Penn State put eight men in the box, and after PSU went up 17-0, Wisconsin realized that they would have to pass to stay in this game, which is exactly what Penn State wanted.  Aside from the one, long drive that Evridge put together for a touchdown, PSU's strategy of making Wisconsin beat them through the air worked to perfection.

Wisconsin threw a few picks, including one to Mark Reuben that was overturned, but was clearly a pick.  Wisconsin also threw a lot of near picks, and PSU's defense was able to deflect many balls that were also nearly intercepted.

The inability for Wisconsin's line to push Penn State's front seven around kept Wisconsin to a low score in this game.  The Badgers had no confidence in their quarterback, and actually switched to a different quarterback because Evridge was playing so badly.  The other QB played better, but by that time PSU's scrubs were in and they weren't even trying...the other QB still threw an interception, though.

The defense, along with the offense, was able to keep the crowd out of the game with stellar performances.  Maybin continued his dominance as he got a couple of sacks and forced a fumble that was recovered by Josh Hull.  The defense forcing turnovers helped the Nittany Lions offense on their way to putting up 48...or 41 on the scoreboard.  One touchdown really had nothing to do with the offense.

Special Teams: BOOM!!!  That's all I can say about that.  On both returning kicks and on kickoff coverage, our special teams completely dominated.  No kickoff for the Badgers was returned past the 30.  Most of the returns were actually held to the 20 or less, including one touchback.

Penn State's special teams blew up every kick return.  They plowed through the blocks and messed up Wisconsin's kick coverage.  Then, they swarmed the ball carrier and hit him hard and brought him down for a minimal gain on the return.  Jeremy Boone also had a pretty nice day punting.

However, the highlight of the special teams that most people will remember is the punt return by Derrick Williams.  In the first quarter, Wisconsin punted the ball to Williams, and he muffed it.  He struggled to recover it and had to basically fall on it twice so he was able to get control of it.  That was a near turnover for the Nittany Lions.

In the second quarter, Williams seemed a little scared to return the punt, but he really wanted to make up for his mistake in the first quarter.  He caught the punt, and started running slowly straight up the field.  Then, he cut it to the right and started sprinting up the field.  He got a couple of good blocks and was able to run it in for a touchdown, which put Penn State up 17-0.

I'm pretty sure this happened on a Wisconsin turnover...it was a great play and even Daryll Clark was open-mouthed when he saw this happen.  Maybin, our defensive end, just leveled this huge offensive lineman from Wisconsin...he just completely blindsided him.  I'm sure all you guys saw that play and were like "Holy $h*t!" when that happened...great play, right?

Overall, Penn State dominated Wisconsin in every phase of the game, on the road, in a harsh environment, during Prime Time.  This was a huge, dominating win for Penn State, and it shows pollsters and critics that the Nittany Lions are for real.

After the Top three teams dropped, we are looking at No.3, if not No.2 in the new polls. After Ohio State was barely able to squeak by Wisconsin, I was worried about this game.  After the game, I magically became less worried about the Ohio State game. Nittany Lion fans everywhere are starting to really talk about this hope of an undefeated season and a National Championship.