Kevin from Nittany White Out and Exmainer stops by for the weekly preview of college football with a local twist.
1998 – Michigan 27, Penn State 0
2000 – Michigan 33, Penn State 11
2005 – Michigan 27, Penn State 25
2007 – Michigan 14, Penn state 9
2009 – ?
- Penn State’s House of Horrors
To say that Penn State has had some less than cherished memories in Michigan Stadium would be an understatement, although it is certainly not impossible. On Saturday the Nittany Lions will look for a rare win in Ann Arbor that could propel them to a run at the Big Ten title and possibly a BCS berth.
Penn State will have the advantage on the field with more experienced players in most positions and better talent from top to bottom. But Michigan will have a chance to take control of the game early if their speedy defensive line can break through and put on the pressure on quarterback Daryll Clark. Clark has already thrown more interceptions this season (seven) than he did all of last season (six) and has shown a trend in coming up somewhat small in the big games of the season. As much as Michigan needs this game to stay in the long shot category of winning the Big Ten, Clark needs this one more in order to back up the idea that he can lead Penn State to the promise land.
Penn State’s flashy running back Stephfon Green will be out this week so Evan Royster will be backed up by Brandon Beachum and Brent Carter. Sean Lee will likely see more plays at linebacker than he did last week in a soggy game against Minnesota.
TEMPLE
The Owls continue their dominance in the MAC and their hard work is not going unnoticed. ESPN’s College Game Day pre-game show will run a brief feature on Temple Saturday morning, so be sure to tune in! Temple is coming off a big win over Army and finds themselves two wins away from becoming bowl eligible. The Owls take to the road to take on Toledo. Already with a MAC record of 3-0 the Owls are tied for first place in the MAC East with Ohio (Temple plays Ohio in the last week of the regular season) and Toledo enters in second place in the MAC West.
A win for the Owls would be huge for the program.
VILLANOVA, PENN
Villanova picked up an important rebound win last week, shutting out James Madison. the Dukes are having a bit of a down year but nothing should be taken away from Villanova for their performance. Villanova has now outscored their opponents 214-96. This week Villanova finds themselves in a bit of a trap game situation. Taking on lowly Rhode Island is the only thing standing between Villanova and undefeated, and top ranked Richmond. Look for a big Villanova victory this week before the big road game next week.
The Quakers are riding a three game winning streak into this weekend’s game against Yale. Yale has a high scoring offense, for the Ivy League, and has allowed fewer points than Penn. The Bulldogs are also undefeated on the road. Look for the Qaukers to try and control the tempo of the game on the ground. Quarterback Keiffer Garton has thrown for 297 yards and two touchdowns.
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