Phase Reversal in Victory over Temple

Lions win first half, then lose second half with Temple

Our Nittany Lions (2-1) exacted revenge upon Temple (1-2) on a nice day in St. Joe Memorial Stadium at Beaver, where the stands were noticeably far short of being packed to the rafters. The final score was 34-27, and it avenged last year’s loss to the Owls in Philly.

The Lions, who normally sleepwalk through the first half of noon kickoff games, must have had an early morning wake-up call from James Franklin, as they appeared alert and awake from the git-go. However, after emerging from the locker room at halftime with a 24-17 lead, Penn State allowed the mighty Owls to hang around and be in it until the end. Temple outscored Penn State in the second half 17-13. So the early morning wake-up apparently made them sleepyheads when the second half rolled around. No one would have or did, in fact, predict this phase reversal.

All Hail Gesicki!

For the highlight reel worthy one-handed catch, Mike “Dropsy” Gesicki deserves a special shout out. Here it was.

Speaking of Dropsy…

The Nittany Lions fumbled five times, losing two of those to the enemy. Trace McSorley also threw an interception, and on special teams, the boys botched a punt by touching a hot ball, which led to a score for Temple. This crap must not prevail as we enter the Big Ten Conference schedule.

The Good News

Temple registered exactly zero sacks, a welcome change from their 10 in last year’s game. The offensive line, referred to here as the Five Traffic Cones, are showing some improvement.

Injuries’ll Killya

The injuries continue to pile up on Penn State, with five starters sitting out the game. During the game, Saquon Barkley appeared to injure his ankle, but returned to action in the second half.

Third Down Woes Continue

The Nittany Lions made two of nine third-down conversions, a whopping 22%, which suuuuuuuuuuuuuucks! However, they did convert two of two fourth-down tries.

That’s That. Now on to Michigan

I’ll be back later with my take on the forthcoming Michigan loss.