Penn State Football: 5 Things We Learned from Beating the Buckeyes

Penn State showed us quite a bit with their win over the Ohio State Buckeyes.  

The Nittany Lions showed us that they their defense is still as stingy as ever.  They showed us that they've still got quite a bit of fight left in them.  Most of all, Penn State showed us that they aren't ready to let their season slip away quite yet. 

Many critics thought Penn State's season was over when everything hit the fan a two weeks ago in State College, PA.  Critics couldn't have been more wrong.  With a win over the Buckeyes, the Nittany Lions earned respect and gained a lot of much-needed momentum heading into next weekend's prime-time matchup with the Wisconsin Badgers.  

Let's look at the five things we learned about the Nittany Lions in their win over the Ohio State Buckeyes.    

The Kicking Game with No. 30 P/PK Anthony Fera Is a Legitimate Threat

One of the keys to the Lions' statement win over the Buckeyes was the ability to get points on drives that stalled between the 20- and 30-yard line.  Sophomore kicker Anthony Fera hit 43- and 46-yard field goals when drives stalled that proved to be the difference-maker point-wise in the game.  Anthony Fera is turning into quite a consistent kicker, and that is a great thing for the Nittany Lions. 

Fera didn't help beat the Buckeyes with just his field goals, he also pinned them deep in their own end of the field consistently throughout the game.  Fera dropped two beauties inside the Buckeyes' 15-yard line that forced the Buckeye's into obvious running situations.  Penn State's ability to win the field position battle against Ohio State proved to be one of the difference-makers in the game.

It is a rare feat, even in college football, to find a player that is both a great kicker and punter, and the Nittany Lions found just that in Anthony Fera.  Having the ability to trust the kicking game will help the Nittany Lions next week in their Big Ten leaders division championship game against the Wisconsin Badgers. 

4. The Paterno Era of Football Is Over

If Joe Paterno was still the head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions, there undoubtedly would not have been any "wildcat" formation today against the Buckeyes.  The Paterno era of football was defined by one word: conservative.  It appears that the Bradley era is a little less conservative, and when I say a little less, I really mean a lot less.  

In last week's game against Nebraska, Penn State fans were wowed by a third down call by Penn State to run an end around that ended with QB Matt McGloin catching a 25-yard pass from WR Curtis Drake.  This week's game against the Buckeyes introduced Penn State fans to something I like to call the "wild lion"—a wildcat formation that puts the ball directly into the hands of playmakers Curtis Drake and Bill Belton.  

The first time Penn State ran the new wildcat formation, RB Stephfon Green ran for a 39-yard touchdown.  To say that the wildcat formation caught Ohio State off guard would be an understatement, it looked like the Buckeyes had no idea what hit them.  

Penn State ran more wildcat formation plays in this one game than they did the past 10 years under Paterno.  Now that Tom Bradley is head coach, the Penn State offensive playbook is opening up and that appears to be just what the doctor ordered.  Say goodbye to "three yards and a cloud of dust" and say hello to "the wildcat formation."

3. Nittany Lions Can and Will Win Without Joe Paterno

The last time Penn State won without Joe Paterno was in 1965.  Fast forward 46 years later and the Nittany Lions are in the same place: winning without Paterno.  

Getting their first win without former coach Joe Paterno is an absolutely enormous hurdle for this Penn State team to get over.

Beating the Buckeyes is more than just beating a tough opponent for this team.  This win shows the players and the fans that they are more than a legendary coach, that they have the potential to do great things this season and that they can win with Tom Bradley.  Beating the Buckeyes in Columbus, something Paterno only achieved once in the last 10 years, showed the players that they control their destiny.

This win reminds the players that, no matter what happened or happens off the field, they are ultimately the ones who are responsible for how their season turns out.  Administration can take their legendary coach away from them, but they can't take away their will to win. 

Penn State's will to win, founded strongly in their stingy defense, is alive and well.  Beating the Buckeyes proved to the Nittany Lions that their will and ability to win exists not within who their head coach is but rather within the players who play the game.   

2. Penn State's Defense Can Contain Athletic Quarterback and Running Back Duo

One of the biggest questions going into the Penn State versus Ohio State game was whether or not Penn State would be able to contain QB Braxton Miller and stop RB Daniel "Boom" Herron.  Penn State answered that question with a solid defensive performance, undoubtedly putting a little fear in the Wisconsin Badgers.  

Wisconsin's dynamic duo of QB Russel Wilson and RB Montee Ball are without a doubt the best QB/RB duo in the Big Ten.  With Wilson's ability to extend plays with his feet and Ball's ability to demoralize defenses with his bruising running style, the Badgers pose a serious threat—a threat that, until today, Penn State didn't look like it was prepared to stop.  What the Nittany Lions showed today was a new ability to contain a scrambling QB and contain a dominant runner by bringing mixed blitz packages early and often.

Penn State confused the Buckeyes early by hitting them with blitz packages.  Yes, that's right, Penn State's defense now blitzes.  It appears that Tom Bradley is a supporter of blitzing the opposing offense, unlike Paterno, and that is a great thing.

If Penn State wants to contain QB Russell Wilson and RB Montee Ball next week and earn themselves a trip to the Big Ten championship, they have to blitz the Badgers early and often.  Before this week's game against the Buckeyes, I didn't know if Penn State was capable of doing that.  Now that Ron Vanderlinden is calling the shots on defense, it appears that the Nittany Lions are more than capable of stepping up to that challenge.      

1. 'Wild-Lion Formation' Is Alive and Well

Where in the world did this new wildcat formation, which I like to call the "wild-lion" formation, come from?

When WR Curtis Drake lined up behind center and got the snap, my jaw dropped to the floor.  There is no way Penn State, one of the most conservative and stagnant offenses in all of college sports, is running the wildcat.  Shockingly enough, Penn State ran the wildcat and actually ran it quite well.  Anyone who watched the game saw what Penn State's wild-lion formation did to Ohio State's defense: it put them on their toes and kept them there for the entirety of the game.  

If Penn State wants to beat the Wisconsin Badgers and earn a spot in the first Big Ten Championship game, they must find ways to keep the Badgers defense on their heels with the wild-lion.  Penn State must find ways to integrate the wild-lion not only into their running game but also into their passing game.  The Badgers will undoubtedly expect Penn State to run the wild-lion as a running formation.  If Penn State can fit the wild-lion into their passing game, they will definitely put the Badgers on their heels.  

Penn State's introduction of the wild-lion couldn't have come at a better time.  The Nittany Lions needed something not named Silas Redd to ignite their offense, and they found just that in the wild-lion formation.

Penn State will ride the wild-lion formation to an upset win over Wisconsin and earn a trip to the Big Ten Championship game against Michigan State.

Prediction: Penn State 27, Wisconsin 24