#22 Illinois - 24, #12 Penn State - 38
Wow, haven't had a chance to blog in a month, but there is PLENTY to blog about. How about Penn State?!?! 5 - 0 for the first time since 2005 (that magical, just-missed-it year). Well, I'll tell you what. This 08 team is ten times better than the 05 team.
While this game started out a little sluggish, I had little doubt that the offense could not come back. Illinois scored first, Penn State followed. Illinois scored again, PSU countered. It was tit-for-tat like that until the 3rd quarter where we just opened it up. Jordan Norwood was out, so finally Derrick Williams stepped up and played like a superstar - 1 rushing TD, 1 receiving TD and a kickoff return for a TD. And of course Royster contributed greatly on the ground (139 yards on 19 carries). Clark finished the day 14/20 with 2 TDs, as well as 50 yards and a rushing TD on 11 attempts.
To coincide with this win, which propelled them to #6 in the polls, USC lost to Oregon State (whom we blew away 45-14), Florida lost to Ole Miss, Alabama beat Georgia and Michigan beat Wisconsin. So a big shake up in the top 10, and Penn State finds their way to #6. However, no one is really giving them a shot at this point. Very few think they can run the table, but have faith. This offense is the real deal. Coming into this game they scored 221 points in 4 games. NO OTHER PENN STATE OFFENSE has ever done that!!!
For this game, here are the grades:
Offense: A (wow, did I really put an "A"???)
Defense: B
Special Teams: A
Next up: we travel to Purdue, who are 2-2, but played Oregon very tough.