The Wolverine Now

OCT. 9, 2013 They've Seen3-2, And Not Happy, Worse Penn State Is Game Facts But The Nittany Lions Are A Resilient Group P By Michael Spath enn State went into last weekend's trip to Indiana with every reason to be confident it would return home with a win. The Nittany Lions were 16-0 all time against the Hoosiers, were 3-1 this fall and coming off their best victory of the season (a 34-0 blanking of Kent State). They also enjoyed a Sept. 28 bye, allowing an ailing roster a chance to heal while providing true freshman quarterback Christian Hackenberg the break he needed to reflect on what he needs to improve upon. The Blue and White left IU a disgruntled, embarrassed team, however, after dropping a 44-24 decision to the Hoosiers in which Indiana outscored Penn State 31-17 in the second half. The fan base quickly turned sour, unleashing venomous rants on second-year boss Bill O'Brien, who was the 2012 Big Ten Coach of the Year. "A lot of Penn State fans thought the 16-0 record meant there was no possibility they could lose to Indiana, regardless of the fact that this Indiana team is pretty decent," BlueWhiteIllustrated.com's Nate Bauer said. "The fact is there are a lot of teams in the Big Ten that are neither good nor bad. They're just average and can beat anyone or lose to anyone. Penn State is in that group. Indiana is in that group. "And no matter how much Penn State fans wish they were among the elite, at this point, they're not, even if O'Brien is a great coach." O'Brien has certainly faced greater media scrutiny in his two seasons than perhaps any other coach in college football — he took over following the Jerry Sandusky scandal and the historic NCAA sanctions that severely handicapped the Nittany Lions' program — and on Saturday, he defended himself with numbers. PSU's roster currently includes 61 scholarship athletes with 41 walk-ons. While Penn State managed to survive a year ago, going 8-4, a lack of depth is taking its expected toll, and every opponent is ready to take advantage. "When the best hand you can play in poker is two pairs when everyone else has a full complement of cards, you're not going to be able to go out there and just win every Saturday," Bauer said. "Penn State fans want to say that there are only 22 players on the field and that Indiana's 22 are not better than Penn State's, but not even Alabama plays with 22 players. Depth Penn State head coach Bill O'Brien has gone 11-6 in two years guiding the Nittany Lions, but sanctions reducing the team's number of scholarship players to just 61 may be taking a toll. photo by Steve Manuel/BWI Photos is critical, and when you're playing injured players because they're a better option than walk-on backups or true freshmen, you have a bunch of tough choices to make that few other coaches are probably faced with. "It's a really difficult spot to be in, and it's not going to get much better next year or the year after that. They'll be competitive and maybe win a game they're not supposed to, but they'll lose a few games the fans just can't come to terms with, like Indiana, and that's just the way it's going to be until they have a full complement again." What: Michigan at Penn State. When: Oct. 12 • 5 p.m. Radio-TV: ESPN will televise the game nationally. The game can be heard on the Michigan Sports Network (950 AM in the Detroit area and on SiriusXM) with longtime partners Frank Beckmann and Jim Brandstatter, and sideline reporter Doug Karsch. Coaches: Michigan: Brady Hoke (24-7, third season). Penn State: Bill O'Brien (11-6, second season). History: Michigan leads Penn State 10-6, last beating the Nittany Lions 14-9 in 2007. Penn State Notes: Penn State's three-game winning streak over Michigan ties its longest stretch of success, matching three consecutive wins over U-M from 1994-96 … Saturday is Homecoming for Penn State and will represent the first sellout of the season after PSU averaged 92,696 in its first three home games (almost 15,000 below capacity of 107,282) … Six of the Nittany Lions' seven remaining opponents have winning records … Junior defensive end Brad Bars is the older brother of Michigan redshirt freshman offensive lineman Blake Bars.

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