Michigan State Review

So another Penn State season is in the books with the finishing touches coming in the form of the Michigan State Spartans. This game was like every other game this year: horrible offense and strong defense. Let’s get to the meat…

Offense

One word: AWFUL!
You should all be ashamed of yourselves, everyone: coaching, line, receivers, quarterback, everyone… even you Tony Hunt – next time try holding onto the ball. Pathetic. Be sure and send extra nice Christmas cards to your defensive counterparts; if it were not for them you would have been destroyed this season.

Defense

Bang up job, once again. Even without Drew Stanton this offense was nothing to sneeze at and the D shut Sparty out in the second half. Given that all of Michigan State’s points came off turnovers, we’ll except the 13 points the defense gave up. Penn State finishes the year in the Top 15 nationally in 5 different defensive categories.

Paul Posluszny lead the way, once again, with 8 tackles and generally played like someone on the Michigan State offense stole his girlfriend. He and his defensive mates dished out enough vicious hits in the early part of the game that MSU receivers started short-arming passes in the latter part.

The unsung hero of this game though, was Nolan McCready who finished tied for second in tackles on the day with 7. In his limited action, McCready made the most of his last game and was in the general area of the football. Michigan State was content to drop the ball off underneath and had success early on in doing so, but Penn State adjusted in the second half and McCready was the guy that stepped up and made the tough tackles.

One other point of note: Justin King spent a better part of the day in tight bump coverage which makes me happy, considering Penn State doesn’t do that too often. This was a case of the defensive coaches showing trust in King’s coverage ability which opened up options for the rest of the D. Hopefully we will see more of that in the future.

Special Teams

Here’s a surprise: the field goal unit had trouble with a snap! Fortunately it was on an extra point and Kelly was able to rugby kick it through the uprights. Speaking of Kelly: another game, another missed chip shot. Apparently he likes short kicks and long ones but hates the pedestrian kicks. But it wasn’t all bad; the special teams once again were solid. Anthony Scirrotto continues to impress with his all-around ability as he blocked a punt that gave Penn State the ball deep in MSU territory. They didn’t score a point, but hey, it’s the thought that counts. Kapinos averaged 43 yards a punt and finishes out a stellar career at Penn State. He will be sorely missed next season.

Overall

Penn State limps into the end of the season much like they have throughout; good defense, spotty special teams, and crappy, embarrassing offense. The only good thing we can take from the offensive side of the ball is that Penn State has now found themselves a viable threat at tight end Andrew Quarless who led the team with 87 yards and a touchdown. Hopefully we will see a lot of him in the future. An 8-4 record would have been close to what most people predicted before the year started, but in my eyes it’s a disappointment. Given the talent at wide receiver and a all around solid running back in Tony Hunt, this team underachieved. The offensive line was offensive and I don’t see any changes for next season. I wish I was smart enough to have the answers, but I don’t. Hopefully things will work out in the off-season but I’m not holding my breath.

Thank you Seniors