As I said a few weeks ago, I live in the heart of Penn State country. I don’t root for Penn State. I wouldn’t call myself a hater, but maybe a disliker. I grew up listening to constant conversations about how Joe Paterno was almost as holy as Jesus Christ himself. He ran a football program that was as pure as the white helmets his players donned.

When my USC Trojans got placed on probation in the early eighties for a ticket scandal that wouldn’t even make the NCAA radar these days, I heard how that would never happen at Penn State. Quite frankly, it became nauseating.

Nowadays, I have to hear Penn State fans hate on their head coach for not winning big games. I get it. I have referred to him as Big Game James in jest right here in this space. Franklin is also extremely unlikable, and getting more so each week. The fans don’t care for 10 win seasons if he can’t beat the big boys.

What if he does beat the big boys. Suddenly, James will be “the man”. Nauseating, I tell you.

So, it is with a heavy heart that I make this proclamation: Penn State is going to win the national championship this year.

Penn State has the most complete team in the country. Don’t believe me? Nick Saban has said it twice this year on ESPN Gameday.

The defense has big time players at every level.

Along the defensive line the Nittany Lions have five or six guys better than a lot of teams’ best defensive lineman. Abdul Carter and Dani Dennis-Sutton get most of the publicity, but there are three or four others along the line that have shown the ability to be game wreckers.

Kobe King and Tony Rojas are as good as it gets at the linebacker position. Also game wreckers.

Jaylen Reed and Zackee Wheatley lead a very talented secondary.

My only question about the defense is why new coordinator Tom Allen doesn’t have them come out to start games playing aggressive, hair on fire defense like they do after halftime.

The offense isn’t perfect, but still hasn’t reached its ceiling.

The offensive line seems more complete than in years past, even if it doesn’t have any big names. They have done a fine job in both the running and passing games.

Penn State has the best tight end in the country and two of the best running backs in the country.

The one weakness in this offense is the wide receiver position. There isn’t a true number one receiver on the roster, and the bunch they have drop too many passes. They have moments, though, and may still have their best days ahead of them.

Drew Allar is the five star kid that was, frankly, a disappointment coming into this season. This version of Allar has been really good. I would argue if he had a couple prime time receivers that his name would be in the Heisman conversation. He certainly hasn’t been perfect, throwing a few bad interceptions and sometimes checking down rather than throwing into a tight window down field. All in all, Allar has shown far more good than bad. He has shown a pocket presence, scrambling ability, and an arm to make NFL caliber throws.

With Allar being hurt Saturday night, Penn State was faced with a possible disastrous situation. Along came the best backup quarterback in the country. Fans may not have thought that before Saturday. Beau Pribula has shown he can run the read option with the best of them. But rarely has he been asked to throw the football in his time on the field. Pribula put any of those doubts to rest Saturday, making some quality throws and leading Penn State to two touchdowns to pull away from Wisconsin.

The best part of this version of Penn State is offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki. Kotelnicki is the best assistant coach in the country. There is no way opponents have enough practice hours in the week to go over all of the exotic formations and plays Kotelnicki dials up each week. It seems he adds one or two more every game. He was a fantastic hire by Franklin, who has not always hit the jackpot on offensive coordinators. 

Penn State has even found a kicker they can trust, so there is that.

This is easily Franklin’s most complete team. Franklin has even coached much more aggressively which was the main reason the Nittany Lions pulled out a victory over USC.

There are reasons to believe I am nuts with my proclamation.

  • They haven’t even played Ohio State yet. The Buckeye bugaboo is real. The Bucks are 4 point favorites according to the opening line. What I witnessed from Ohio State last week was a team with a porous offensive line. Ohio State does have the wide receivers Penn State wishes they had, but quarterback Will Howard has been inconsistent. The spread says OSU by 4. That is based on the past not the present. Home field will be big, too. If not for TV and a “Big Stupid Noon Kickoff” we might see this atmosphere.

 

 

  • I get the “I’ll believe it when I see it” mentality. Plus, Penn State isn’t sure if Allar will play. Maybe that works to their advantage. Now the Buckeyes will have to prepare for both Allar and Pribula. On the other hand, can Pribula duplicate his performance against a tougher foe?
  • The Penn State schedule has been Charmin soft. It is basically a one game schedule. It looked to be a two game schedule, but USC has wilted to a 4-4 record. Maybe Penn State planted the flag too soon. They almost lost to USC, and allowed inferior teams like Bowling Green, Illinois, and Wisconsin in the game for far too long. You could argue we don’t really know how good Penn State is because of the weak schedule.
  • USC is the only truly competent offense Penn State has faced and the Nittany Lions D gave up 30 to the Trojans and, much like Kurt Russell, were darn fortunate to escape from LA. 
  • Penn State would have to beat high powered Oregon at least once to win it all. Not to mention high powered Texas and Georgia and Tennessee and Miami, just to name a few. 
  • The whole Big Game James thing. It is real until it isn’t. And, no, USC was not a big game win.

Maybe I am crazy. I’ve already got text messages from Penn State fans anticipating a loss this Saturday. I just think this team has a different feel to it. I think James Franklin is an ass. I don’t find anything endearing about him. However, the guy can recruit. He has a deep, deep team. Three starters went down in the Wisconsin game and you never would have known it. The kids like playing for Franklin, and that can never be disregarded. Franklin hit the jackpot with the hire of Kotelnicki.

I am sure my Penn State buddies think this is my version of a Halloween trick to jinx the Nittany Lions of a treat later this season. If they lose Saturday I am sure I will hear about it.

I don’t think they will lose Saturday, and I don’t think they will lose at all this season.

I don’t look forward to the fans coming out of the woodwork or being inundated with blue and white crap. The worst will be the Franklin haters anointing him King.

But I think what I think, and I feel what I feel. I think and feel this is going to be Penn State’s year.

If it is, the Valley can truly be happy.

Two Cent Takes: Trick or Treat Edition

Trick: Aaron Rodgers getting paid a truck load of money, getting his coach fired, his OC demoted, and his best buddy brought in to play receiver then…

Treat: Watching Aaron Rodgers lose to the New England Patriots.

Trick: Not watching the World Series but still finding joy for Freddie Freeman, who has dealt with a lot this season and...

Treat: Hearing Joe Davis on the call, one of the best current announcers in sports.

 

 

Trick: Joel Embiid making a Brinks Truck amount of money each year, while playing half a season then…

Treat: Watching Embiid get knocked out of the NBA playoffs early.

Trick: Watching the Pens dive headfirst to the bottom of the standings, but knowing…

Treat: The Flyers are at the bottom and a John Torterella explosion is only moments away.

Trick: Laughing at the Browns waiting all this time to put at least a marginally decent QB on the field but…

Treat: Beating the Ravens and watching Lamar Jackson pitch his helmet across the field.

Trick: Steelers fans dealing with a limited offense under Justin Fields leadership while still going 4-2, but now…

Treat: Russell Wilson, a professional quarterback, is 2-0 as starter and has the offense humming.

Trick: Suffering through a Sunday night Niners/Cowboys game knowing…

Treat: You get to see sad Jerry Jones in his suite.

 

 

Trick: Being required to watch Jason Garrett, Jac Collinsworth, et al every Sunday night but also…

Treat: Listen to Maria Taylor. Oh wait…that is like a treat with a razor blade in it. Sorry. My bad.

Trick: Seeing Pitt get absolutely no respect knowing…

Treat: It infuriates clown Pat Narduzzi.

Trick: Being forced to root for Texas A&M and those idiot yell leaders, but…

Treat: Seeing Brian Kelly slink off the field a loser.

Trick: Seeing James Franklin act like a petulant child at a press conference last week, but…

Treat: Being man enough to admit he handled it poorly.

 

 

Trick: Knowing people cringe when Lee Corso comes on TV, but…

Treat: Knowing you are right for still loving every segment this icon is part of.

 

 

Trick: Trying to figure out where everyone transferred to in college basketball, but…

Treat: Getting to know the all name team.

 

 

The Weekly Shiny Penny

So, if you muddled through the messy Bears/Commanders game you were paid off with the best ending to a game we will see this year. And if you follow social media, you know that Tyrique Stevenson was busy during the first part of the play. If the Bears had the guts they would suspend him without pay for a month.

 

 

A Penny For My Final Thought…

The field that has been used for the last 90 years for my local high school’s football games closed up shop last Friday night. The home team hit a bomb on 4th and 16 to pull out a late victory and close out the old ball yard with a victory.

Mitchell Field sits in the heart of Lewistown, PA, and has been the home of all the iterations of our county’s schools over the years. It is a beautiful spot to watch high school football on a Friday night.

Mitchell

All good things come to an end. Most older stadiums meet their day of reckoning. As for Mitchell Field, it has seen its better days. Parking has always been a bit of a problem because Mitchell Field literally sits amongst the neighborhood. Yet, I wonder if the positives still outweighed the negatives.

There is no doubt our local high school needed an upgrade in facilities. The thing is, we aren’t Penn State University. There isn’t an overflowing pile of cash sitting in our school district’s bank vault. Donations, naming rights, and government grants did cover some of the bill for the fancy new stadium being built at the high school. Parking will be more abundant, and all sports and the band will benefit from the new stadium.

Of course, even at the high school level money talks so the stadium will have long, unwieldy corporate names. And I mean everything is going to have a corporate or donor name attached to it. I get it, but still yuck.

My beef with this and other old stadium closures is sentimentality gets shoved aside. In the case of Mitchell Field, intentional lack of upkeep was used to warrant the change. Not once did anyone study the finances and feasibility of upgrading the current field —a field that has been a huge part of our community’s history— despite at least one school board member asking for it. Not to mention, if upkeep would have been maintained the cost would be far less.

At every level, politics get involved. When professional teams want funding for a new stadium, politics gets involved. When colleges want new facilities, politics get involved. It is no different with high schools. In my community there has always been a push by the elites in the county to move everything out of the “cesspool” that is Lewistown. They hate that Lewistown is the county seat. Don’t think that wasn’t a factor in the stadium moving. It is still a Lewistown address, but it isn’t in town.

Look, the new field and all the facilities that are coming with it will be fantastic for the kids. I am certainly not trying to downplay that fact.

I was a drummer in the band, and would have loved to march on a turf field. No ruts to potentially step in while lugging 40 pound drums would have been wonderful. Our high school’s current band is one of the best on the East Coast and has been for many years. The band director doesn’t get nearly enough credit for turning a program that had become moribund before his arrival. Ironically, Mitchell Field was named after a legendary band director. Maybe Art Belfiore, the current director, should get consideration with this new field. Oh wait, he didn’t donate a bunch of money so forget that idea.

I feel happy for the band kids who will now be able to host competitions on their home turf, something that hasn’t happened since I was in school in the 80’s. The track and cross country runners will certainly have a nice track to train and have meets. In addition to football, field hockey, soccer, lacrosse, baseball, and softball will all benefit from the new facilities. Clearly that is a great thing.

I still don’t have to like it.

Maybe it is old age catching up to me. It is true that I have always been a sentimentalist. It seems a shame to throw aside such a beautiful venue. My friends and I used to stand along the fence every Friday night to watch the locals. We always had the answers to what may have been ailing the football team, and answers to most of life’s problems. At least in our minds we had the answers. People started referring to that spot as “coaches corner”. Countless times opposing fans approached us to rave about how beautiful the venue was and how lucky we were to have it.

As of 9:30 PM last Friday night, Mitchell Field’s luck ran out. And it is a damn shame.

Just my two cents…