Grades against Northwestern

That was interesting. Things started OK, got sloppy in the middle and ended with a fluery.

• Quarterbacks — Another fine performance from Daryll Clark, who seems to be getting stronger as the season progresses. Clark finished the game 22-for-31 for 274 yards and one touchdown. Those numbers could have easily been better if not for a few drops by Graham Zug, who also tried to perfect his one-hand catches to no avail throughout the game. Again, it was good to see Clark run the ball after Joe Paterno admitted to holding back on allowing Clark to run because of the inexperience behind the reigning Big Ten Offensive Player of the year. Grade: A+.
• Running backs — The numbers look good (19 carries for 144 yards and two TDs between Evan Royster and Brandon Beachum) at first glance, but that’s only because of a late 69-yard TD by Royster and a 16-yard run by Beachum on the final possession of the game. A lot of a running back’s performance goes by how the line in front of them block, but I thought Royster went down easily a few times and there were some holes that he missed. Everyone has an off day and today was Royster’s and Penn State still won by 21. Grade: C.
• Offensive line — Northwestern came out and hit Penn State in the mouth, but the line got better as the game progressed. They gave Clark a nice pocket to work from and allowed him to step up when rushers closed in from the edges. There were three times I thought Northwestern defenders were offsides by how quickly they got off the snap, but that wasn’t the case. The odd thing was it seemed to always be right near center Stefen Wisniewski so either the defense read something on the junior center or Clark’s cadence. Either way, not very good. Grade: B-.
• Receivers — This will be the last time I say this, Derrick Moye is not only one of the best young receivers in the Big Ten, but in the nation, too. The guy catches everything near him and showed some impressive speed I had no clue he had. The ESPN announcers said he was clocked at 4.38 in the 40-yard dash and was the PIAA 200 and 400 champion as a senior and he showed that on his 53-yard touchdown catch. No surprise that Penn State’s offense got better once Andrew Quarless got involved. Now to the bad. Not sure what was going on with Zug, but he dropped a touchdown on Penn State’s first play and got caught peaking at the defense late in the second quarter with Penn State trying to get a late score. I wasn’t too happy to see Chaz Powell quit on a slant route in the second quarter and I don’t think I’m alone. He’ll hear about that all week and then some. Grade: B.
• Defensive line — Jared Odrick was his usual self and Jack Crawford continues to improve. You had to be impress with that play in the first quarter when Crawford read an option play perfectly and chased down the back and drop him for a 5-yard loss. Devon Still is going to be a good one and continues to provide Penn State with excellent depth behind Ollie Ogbu and Odrick. It was good to see Kevion Latham get a shot on the weak side after Jerome Hayes provided little rush and missed a few tackles. Eric Lattimore’s size is missed as he nurses and ankle injury, but overall this unit played well. Grade: B+.
• Linebackers — Not a good day for this unit against a tough Northwestern offense. Mike Kafka read them perfectly on almost every play, knowing where his underneath receivers would be one-on-one with a linebacker, a matchup the Wildcats’ receivers won throughout the first half. Navorro Bowman was a total non-factor early and was on the ground far too much. It was good to see Sean Lee on the field so much, but not so good to see him struggle moving laterally. There’s no way his knee is 100 percent, but there aren’t many options behind him. Josh Hull wasn’t good and wasn’t bad, which is unusual for him this season. Grade: C.
• Secondary — D’Anton Lynn had the best game of his young career. It’s hard not to like a player like Lynn, who is athletic enough to cover receivers smaller than him and big enough to make sure tackles more often than not. Lynn struggled last week against Michigan, missing tackles all over the place, but was big time against Northwestern. A.J. Wallace dropped an easy pick in the third quarter and hasn’t been nearly as good as he was against Minnesota. The safeties were slow to react to Northwestern’s short passing game and Drew Astorino missed too many plays in space. I didn’t even notice Nick Sukay, which might not be the worst thing in the world. Grade: B.
• Special teams — Ugh. Just when I thought they were improving there was their play against Northwestern. The 12 players on the field penalty in the first quarter is inexcusable. Allowing a punter to escape a tackle falls into the same category Nate Stupar. And what in the world is wrong with Jeremy Boone? Maybe he’s read my blog too much and seen how much I’ve pumped him up because he hasn’t been anywhere nearly the same player the past month. Two touchbacks and a 39-yard punt that cost Penn State three points at the end of the first half is so unlike Boone. Maybe he’s hurt. I don’t know. On a good note, Colllin Wagner was solid, but I still wish his kickoffs went into the end zone. Grade: D.
• Coaching — I’m not sure what Joe Paterno and his staff said at halftime, but it worked. I have a feeling there was an expletive or 17 said during those 15 or so minutes. Good for them. Yes, Paterno always talks up Penn State’s upcoming opponent, but there’s no way Penn State wasn’t looking ahead to Ohio State next week. Paterno wasn’t and the coaches weren’t, but the team clearly was. Getting them straightened out against a good Northwestern team deserves praise. Kudos to Galen Hall for going to the passing game and putting the ball in Clark’s hands when the running game wasn’t working. But who called two pass plays on three downs with less than five minutes to go and a 21-point lead? Grade: B.
• Overall — Penn State got a break when Kafka got hurt and couldn’t return. Liberty High School graduate Dan Persa did an admirable job, but that’s not going to cut it against a team like Penn State. Clark is really coming into his own and I’m beginning to wonder where his career will be in the NFL. Not if it makes because he will. If Reno Mahe could hang on with the Eagles for so many years, Clark will get a shot and probably more than a shot. It should be an interesting week with Terrelle Pryor making his first appearance as a player at Penn State. I don’t think the country folk will be too kind to the preseason Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year. But that’s off course. Good job in the second half, bad job in the first half and a 21-point victory to boot. Grade: B.