The long-awaited return to Beaver Stadium after a year of no fans paid off this weekend as Penn State beat Auburn 28-20 at the infamous White Out game. This huge win not only upset Auburn and had Penn State students cheering, it also moved the Nittany Lions up four places on the AP Poll ranking. Penn State Football is going into their next match up against Villanova while comfortably residing at rank number six.
The Journey
This 3-0 record has been made possible by some standout players, one being a new addition to the team, transfer student from Baylor, John Lovett. His size and strength are obvious contributors to his newfound success on the team, but his speed is what makes him a powerhouse. Big and fast — an impressive combination that got him to gain his 27 yards during the game. On Tuesday the 21st, Coach Franklin described him as “an intelligent guy,” who has been able to “learn the system and the projections and all those types of things.” After the game he played on Saturday, Franklin is happy to have him, as he and the fans both hope “that (his) role will continue to grow as the season goes on.”
Sean Clifford
If we are going to talk about Penn State Football, then we must talk about Sean Clifford. The starting quarterback gave quite the performance this Saturday, giving us 280 yards and two touchdowns while only missing four out of his 32 attempted passes. Franklin reminded us at the press conference that “there’s ups and downs and twists and turn in everybody’s career, but this is the Sean Clifford that I’ve always expected and anticipated.” Clifford took some blows last season, so after this win he ran a well-deserved victory lap, which involved a slight wave to the defeated Auburn section. “It was probably the calmest I’ve ever been in a game, to be honest with you,” Clifford said about Saturday “from the first snap, I was seeing everything.”
The Future
Going into the Villanova game this weekend, Franklin set a strict expectation of the upcoming week and noted that upsets happen. “We have to be prepared…we gotta have a great week of preparation and make sure that we are preparing consistently, week in and week out, up to our standards.” Penn State plays at noon in Beaver again, with hopes to come out with a win and a new placement in ranking.
1 Comment