There is a pretty obvious reason why Beaver Stadium on the campus of Penn State is the biggest and arguably toughest stadium to play in when it comes to college football. The sheer passion of the fans, aged from infants to senior citizens, makes the atmosphere that much more unforgettable.
And to think this is only the first of about 30 Penn State football games I will see in this hallowed palace!
Penn State ran out to a quick 17-0 first quarter lead en route to a 31-7 romp of the Akron Zips Saturday afternoon.
Upon the conclusion of this game, there were many positives that I drew from the game in terms of the way the team is playing. However, there are still some minor flaws that will need to be addressed before the big name games like Ohio State.
Penn State established an air attack in the first few quarters, as Daryll Clark hooked up with his new receiving corps of Chaz Powell, Graham Zug, and Derek Moye on a regular basis. Clark would finish the game 29-40 passing the ball, throwing 3 touchdowns in the process, to the aforementioned Powell, Moye, and Zug, respectively. Even though the stats say that Clark only threw one interception, Akron narrowly missed at least two other pick opportunities.
Penn State's rushing attack did not produce the major results that you come to expect from a Joe Paterno offense. This was probably due to the fact that the coaching staff wanted to see how Clark would fare working with new receivers. Evan Royster only got 14 touches for 61 yards, and backup Stephfon Green had a rough go, with only 17 yards on 7 carries.
Perhaps the biggest surprise in the game was a fake punt Penn State ran to perfection midway through the second quarter. Andrew Dailey took the direct snap and as Akron ran around wondering why punter Jeremy Boone didn't have the football, Dailey scampered for 37 yards deep into Akron territory.
The Penn State defense left little room to worry, as they once again flexed their muscle in holding Akron to 28 rushing yards the entire ballgame, while sacking Akron quarterbacks four times and holding them to 3-14 on 3rd down conversions.
So one in the bag for the Nittany Lions, and next week, myself and Chris are sure to have some conversations about pre-game with the Lions hosting Greg Paulus and the Syracuse Orange from Beaver Stadium.
A footnote: A Zip is in no way associated with a kangaroo, so why is Akron's mascot just that, a kangaroo? If anybody can explain that to me, I'll be thoroughly pleased to hear it.
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