Penn State makes quick work of Michigan, 35-10

In one of the Big 10’s best rivalries, the Penn State Nittany Lions rolled past the Michigan Wolverines, 35-10.

Penn State’s opportune defense was too much for Michigan’s young quarterback, a California native who was clearly having trouble playing the cold, rainy conditions.

The Nittany Lions were more than happy to take advantage, forcing a bevy of turnovers and quickly turning them into points.

They held a 19-10 lead at halftime and scored 13 unanswered in the second half while shutting out Michigan’s offense.

The Nittany Lions now need an Iowa loss to stay in contention for the Big 10’s Rose Bowl bid.

Saturday, October 31, 2009 at 7:05 am by steve

Penn State crushes Eastern Illinois, 52-3

The Penn State Nittany Lions took out some frustration from last week’s loss on Eastern Illinois in a 52-3 pasting.

Penn State once again cost themselves a shot at the national championship by losing to Iowa, the second straight year that has happened.

The Nittany Lions scored 10 points in the first quarter followed by four touchdowns in the second quarter to take a commanding, 38-0 lead into halftime.

Penn State is now focused on trying to win-out and take the Big 10 conference title, which would put them in a BCS game.

There is still a very small shot at the national championship game, but that’s better than nothing.

Sunday, October 18, 2009 at 8:52 am by steve

Former RB Austin Scott suing university

Former Penn State running back Austin Scott has filed a lawsuit against the university that claims that he suffered “mental pain and suffering” and diminished “earning capacity” because of a rape charge filed against him that was later dropped.

Prosecutors withdrew the charges in April 2008 after the state Superior Court ruled jurors could hear testimony about the alleged victim’s involvement in a separate sexual assault case in 2003. The defendant in that case was acquitted.

Centre County District Attorney Michael Madiera’s office said then in a statement that charges were dropped because there was “no reasonable likelihood” it could meet the burden of proof.

Scott was suspended by head coach Joe Paterno after five games during the 2007 season, and never played college football again.

While these lawsuits are typically unsuccessful, it’s hard to blame Scott for his ill will towards these parties and his case does sound compelling. It’s unlikely that there was a conspiracy against him, but there’s little doubt that this case effectively ended his playing career. Considering that the charges were dropped entirely, it must have been a tough pill to swallow for the former high school star.

Friday, October 16, 2009 at 3:15 pm by Raj Sethi

LB Lee Returns to Practice

Happy Valley just got a little happier with the return of injured linebacker Sean Lee to practice this week, although Penn State coach Joe Paterno will not be rushing Lee back to the lineup.

Lee joined in on some light drills in practice Monday after being sidelined the past three weeks due to a left knee sprain. The senior linebacker intends on building practice reps this week, enough so he can help Penn State on Saturday as they take on Minnesota in Happy Valley.

“If I keep progressing and feeling good, I’ll be ready to go,” Lee said Tuesday. “Based on how I felt yesterday, I think that’s going to be the case.”

For his part, Paterno isn’t ready to take it as quickly as Lee. He doesn’t want to jeopardize a potential NFL career down the road for Lee, and will not place him in the game until he’s sure that Lee’s not at an elevated risk for injury.

“He could do everything, it’s just a question of whether he can do and stay healthy physically,” Paterno told reporters Tuesday. “If we play Sean, Sean’s going to have play as if he’s not hurt.”

“After the first week, I knew this was going to take longer than I thought,” Lee said. “Within the last week, week-and-a-half, it’s really accelerated and I’ve felt good.”

Paterno also used the time to speak about defensive tackle Brandon Ware, who was already on the sideline due to a broken right foot. Judging by Paterno’s comments? Ware won’t be seeing meaningful playing time any time soon.

“Don’t look forward to Brandon Ware doing anything this year. He’s way overweight. He’s cutting classes,” Paterno said. “Brandon Ware right now is in my doghouse and I have no plans to use Brandon Ware.”

Wednesday, October 14, 2009 at 10:21 pm by bryan

No. 15 Nittany Lions bounce back with win over Fighting Illini

The 15th-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions took the anger and frustration of seeing its national title hopes disappear after last week’s loss to Iowa out on the helpless Illinois Fighting Illini on Saturday, running all over them in a 35-17 win.

Penn State bounced back in a big way for head coach Joe Paterno, showing no ill effects from last week’s shocking result. The Nittany Lions ran for a season-high 338 yards in the win. Backup running back Stephfon Green ran for a career-high 120 yards and a touchdown, and Evan Royster ran for 105 more and a score of his own. Even quarterback Darryl Clark got in on the act, rushing for 83 yards and two 1-yard TDs.

The defense held Juice Williams and the Illinois offense to just three points until the fourth quarter, and limited a normally-explosive ground game to only 130 yards on 35 attempts.

Sunday, October 4, 2009 at 5:37 pm by Raj Sethi