I expected a loss. I didn’t expect it to be so ugly.
Penn State’s 24-3 loss at Iowa in primetime on Saturday didn’t come as a shock to this writer (I predicted an 11-point Hawkeye victory). However, the way the Nittany Lions arrived at the 21-point loss did surprise me.
The Nits were sloppy, ill-prepared and out of sorts. They took stupid penalties, made stupid mistakes and were truly never in the game.
In today’s edition of Morelli OnLion, we’ll take a look back at the debacle in Iowa City and look ahead to this week’s homecoming tilt with Illinois.
Hawkeyes Pierce Lions
After falling behind 10-0 in the first quarter against Iowa on Saturday night, the Nittany Lions tried desperately to get back into the game. They trailed, 17-0, when freshman QB Rob Bolden hooked up with wideout Brett Brackett 49-yard gain with time winding down in the first half.
Mass confusion followed Brackett’s grab.
As coach Joe Paterno tried desperately to take a timeout, coaches on the sideline signaled for Bolden to spike the ball. He did spike the ball, letting precious seconds tick of the clock. As Chris Berman says, “tick, tick, tick, tick …”
At the postgame news conference, both JoePa and JayPa said that the spike didn’t change what they were going to do — it was going to be a field goal all the way.
And that’s part of the problem. There’s a world of difference between five seconds or three seconds. With five seconds, you can throw a pass to the end zone and still attempt a field goal. With three seconds, it’s no mystery — you have to kick the field goal.
The comedy of errors should come as no surprise. When you have a head coach who refuses to wear a headset, disasters like this are bound to happen. As one colleague pointed out, this would be a fireable offense at some schools. Not at Penn State, though.
It isn’t the first time we’ve seen something like this and it certainly won’t be the last.
Two-Minute Drill: Iowa
Game ball to … Ricky Stanzi
The Iowa QB got it done once again against the Penn State defense, completing 16-of-22 for 227 yards, one touchdown and one interception. He may not throw the prettiest ball, but he comes up big in the clutch. He really made some key throws on Saturday night.
What Was He Thinking? … Joe Paterno
I’m not sure what the iconic coach was thinking when he called a timeout with one second left in the game. The Lions were trailing 24-3. What was the point of the timeout? To score a TD and make things look better in the boxscore. C’mon coach, you’re better than that.
Numerology … 54
Penn State had just 54 net yards running the football against the Hawkeyes. Until those numbers improve, the Nittany Lions will continue to struggle. It doesn’t matter who the Lions have in there — Evan Royster, Stephfon Green or Silas Redd — the yards aren’t coming.
Play of the Game … We’ll go with Iowa’s first TD of the game, a 9-yard touchdown pass from Stanzi to Derrell Johnson-Koulianos. That made it 10-0 and the Hawkeyes never looked back.
The Countdown
5. JoePa — Where do we begin? The clock mismanagement at the end of the first half? The fact that his squad was not prepared for a big game … again? Or the fact that Kirk Ferentz owns him?
4. Rob Bolden — You can talk positively about the freshman QB all you want, but the fact that he couldn’t find his way into the end zone speaks volumes about his inexperience. You gotta know which arm has the ball, son!
3. Kevin Newsome — Speaking of running the ball, why would the Lions not utilize Newsome at the goal line against the Hawkeyes. He’s built for that and would have scored easily on the running play.
2. Tom Bradley — Penn State’s defensive coordinator is clearly still looking for the right combinations. On Saturday, a total of 19 different players rotated with the first team offense. We counted a couple of freshmen among those who saw the field.
1. Kirk Ferentz — Once again, the Upper St. Clair native showed Paterno how it’s done. He had his troops ready to go and they came out of the gate clicking on all cylinders. It’s a shame he’s locked into a long-term deal with Iowa, he’d certainly look good in the blue and white.
Looking Ahead: Illinois
The Fighting Illini are 2-2 but put a scare into Ohio State last week. If the Lions aren’t careful, this could prove to be a trap game. We’re not quite sure how Ron Zook still has his job, but a win over Penn State in Happy Valley could get him a contract extension.
It won’t happen. The homecoming crowd will go home happy.
Gantdaily.com prediction: Penn State 17, Illinois 13.
Chris Morelli is an award-winning writer/editor who lives in Centre County and covers Penn State athletics. He is also a regular on “Sports Central,” which airs on ESPN Radio in Altoona and State College. E-mail him at morellionlion@gmail.com. Also, be sure to check out Morelli OnLion on Facebook!