Penn State Football: Why Tom Bradley Won't Get His First Win Against Ohio State

You certainly have to give credit to Penn State for putting forth a valiant effort in the second half of last Saturday’s game against Nebraska.

Down 17-0 midway through the third quarter, the Nittany Lions fought their way back to within striking distance after scoring two touchdowns to make it 17-14, but ultimately, the offense just didn’t have enough firepower to dig out of such a deep second-half hole.

The defeat at the hands of the Cornhuskers was a tough blow for a school, which has been trying to cope with one of the worst scandals in sports history.

Last week’s game may have offered up one of the most surreal atmospheres ever for a college football game, but the Penn State crowd handled themselves properly and you can tell that the long recovery and healing process has at least been set in motion.

As the school continues to grieve for the victims of these horrific allegations and search for answers as to why school officials didn’t do more about them, the football team will head out on the road this weekend to face off against Ohio State.

Although it seems that football has become a complete afterthought in the wake of this tragic news, the fact is Penn State is still very much in the race for the Big Ten championship.

Even with last week’s loss, the Nittany Lions are still 8-2 on the season, with a 5-1 conference record and first place in the Big Ten Leaders Division.

With games against the Buckeyes and Wisconsin still to come, though, it may be hard for the team to keep its grasp on that top spot.

This week’s battle in Columbus will feature two teams led by coaches who were thrust into their roles under difficult circumstances. Both of these programs know the sting of facing a recent major scandal, although you can in no way compare the sexual abuse of children to a couple of players selling memorabilia.

The point is, though, that both Tom Bradley and Luke Fickell know what it’s like to take over a team under difficult circumstances, but Fickell’s now had 10 games to get his footing under him, whereas Bradley has only had one.

That may be why Ohio State holds a big edge on Saturday.

On paper, these teams have two of the least productive offenses in the Big Ten, but Penn State does hold a definitive defensive advantage.

Both teams will be coming into the game off losses last week, as the Buckeyes got picked off by Purdue.

The real big factors in this game will be emotion and the mentality of both teams. With the emotional roller coaster that Penn State has been on, you have to wonder if the Nittany Lions will have their complete focus on Saturday’s game and if they’ll have enough gas in the tank to win a hard-fought battle in one of the toughest environments in the country.

Las Vegas has already installed the Buckeyes as six-point favorites, and to me that seems about right.

Penn State will certainly come out fighting, because there are too many veterans and upperclassmen on this team for the Nittany Lions to just lay down and quit, but it’s going to be a tough situation for Tom Bradley to get his first win this weekend, that's for sure.