BadgerBlitz.com brings back its All-Out Blitz weekly series for the 2024 season, where you can find everything you need to know about Wisconsin's upcoming opponent. We look at UW's eighth opponent of the season in the Penn State Nittany Lions, who the Badgers will host Saturday evening in Camp Randall at 6:30 p.m. on NBC.
QUICK PROGRAM FACTS
Head Coach: James Franklin (94-39 career record, eleventh season at Penn State)
Penn State All Time Record: 914-401-37 (.676)
2024 Record: 6-0 (3-0 Big Ten)
Rankings: No. 3 (AP, Coaches)
Series vs. Wisconsin: 11-9
WHEN PENN STATE HAS THE FOOTBALL
The Penn State offense has undergone a shift in offensive philosophy, akin to what happened to the Badgers when Luke Fickell brought in Phil Longo as coordinator.
Coach James Franklin hired Andy Kotelnicki from Kansas to expand their offense and add a big-play dimension that it had been lacking for years
“[Hiring Kotelnicki] was also about [him] coming in here and only changing what we had to change because, again, it wasn’t necessarily broke. It was that we needed to take the next step from a production standpoint and specifically from an explosive play perspective,” Franklin said earlier this week.
Another motivation behind the hire was to unlock the potential of quarterback Drew Allar, who became the Penn State starter in 2023. He had a great first year as a starter, throwing for 2,631 yards and 25 touchdowns to only two interceptions. But he’s made considerable strides with Kotelnicki, evident in his improved completion percentage (59.9% to 70.5), yards-per-attempt (7.8 to 10.5) and yards per completion (11.3 to 14.5).
The two other standout quarterbacks the Badgers have played this season — Alabama’s Jalen Milroe and USC’s Miller Moss — both gashed them. Allar is completely capable of standing firm in the pocket and dissecting Wisconsin’s defense play after play. It’s imperative for them to generate pressure and knock Allar off his game, or else he can win all by himself.
Outside linebackers Darryl Peterson and John Pius, as well as defensive tackle Elijah Hills, have stood out as the Badgers’ most reliable pass rushers (14, 12 and 10 pressures, respectively). Saturday’s matchup gives them a chance to show their recent improvements on a bigger stage.
Defensive coordinator Mike Tressel could also send extra pressure and incorporate his linebackers into the pass rush, which would involve Jaheim Thomas. It’ll be their job to try and get to Allar before he can find his favorite target, tight end Tyler Warren.
The senior leads the Nittany Lions in every major receiving category, with 40 receptions, 513 receiving yards and four receiving touchdowns. Warren’s also coming off of a 17-reception day against USC, which tied the FBS record for receptions in a game by a tight end.
Safeties Austin Brown and Preston Zachman often play in the slot and will factor in the plan to limit Warren, as will linebackers Tackett Curtis and Christian Alliegro.
However, this is still Penn State, so they will try to run the ball. But some recent struggles in that department could discourage them. They averaged 251 rushing yards per game during their first four games, but have only ran for a total of 126 over the last two.
A major factor in that decline has been the injury to leading rusher Nicholas Singleton, which sidelined him against UCLA and limited him against USC.
Still, the Nittany Lions will try their best to run, and the Badgers’ front must maintain their success if they want a shot at victory. They’ve limited three rushing teams in a row, giving up an average of 133.3 rushing yards per game. Hills, Ben Barten and Curt Neal must build a wall on the interior and force Penn State to put the game into the hands of their secondary.
WHEN WISCONSIN HAS THE BALL
Penn State also underwent a coordinator change on defense. Manny Diaz became the head coach at Duke, so Franklin turned to former Indiana head coach Tom Allen, who has shown no sign of drop-off.
They’re the No. 6 defense in the country in yards allowed per game (262.5) and No. 9 in points allowed per game (14.5).
The unit is led by their stout defensive line, highlighted by Abdul Carter, Dani Dennis-Sutton and Zane Durant. Carter is likely a future All-American and first round NFL Draft pick, while Dennis-Sutton leads the team with 21 pressures.
They’ll produce a level of pressure that quarterback Braedyn Locke hasn’t seen since he played Alabama. The redshirt sophomore has improved considerably over the past three games, completing 64.7% of his passes, scoring seven total touchdowns and throwing for an average of 253 yards per game.
Locke has developed a noticeable connection with receiver Vinny Anthony, who’s become Locke’s primary deep threat and now leads the team in receiving yards (314) and leads the country in yards-per-reception (24.2).
However, against Penn State’s front, it won’t be as easy to stand in the pocket and wait for a play to develop. They’re gonna need to rely on the quick passing game, which would involve slot receivers Will Pauling and Trech Kekahuna.
Along with Locke and Anthony, a recent riser on offense has been running back Tawee Walker. The Oklahoma transfer stepped into the RB1 spot after Chez Mellusi stepped away from the program, and has taken full advantage of the extra responsibility, rushing for an average of 139.3 yards per game and scoring six touchdowns over the last three games.
Beyond the strong Nittany Lion front, the standout player on Penn State’s defense is safety Jaylen Reed. He leads the team in tackles (39) and can be found on any part of the field at any given moment, similar to Hunter Wohler.
Ultimately, Longo must reach deep into his bag of tricks if they want a real chance to shock the world. Penn State is more talented than Wisconsin, and cannot be bested without some sense of creativity.
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