ALTOONA, Pa. -- Welcome to our Penn State mailbag to open the season. I've answered some of your hot topic questions here, submitted by email or social media.
Q: Wisconsin is now -5.5, but I think Penn State wins the game. What do you think? -- Mason (email)
A: I'm picking Wisconsin to win, and my score is 34-26. So I can see the Badgers covering the number. I do think Penn State can win, however, if Sean Clifford plays really well. My best play for the game is actually the over 50.5 points. As you can see, I picked 60 points in my prediction, and the only way Penn State can win would be to score a lot of points. I do believe Wisconsin will score a good bit, simply because I don't have great faith in PSU's defense in an early start. I know a lot of people prefer point spreads or the money line, but in this case, I don't see an option better than over 50.5.
Q: Please give Coach Franklin some advice for winning difficult road games? This has to change if he wants the club to make an expanded playoff. -- wchorle (DKPS)
A: James Franklin doesn't want my advice, believe me. But I do have a pretty easy answer: Start fast. I've written extensively in the past about how the biggest issue with the Franklin tenure has been that the team often sleepwalks through the first half of games -- home and road. Sure, the coaches make good adjustments at halftime, and PSU usually is never out of many games. But I believe the Lions need to be ready to kick some rear and explode into games, setting the tone early, instead of just sort of crawling into things and seeing how everything goes.
Q: Clifford is the biggest wild card. Can Yurcich make him into a passable QB? I have my doubts. -- penguinmike66 (DKPS)
Q: How short of a lease does Clifford have? Asked differently, is Roberson far enough along to step in and lead the offense if Clifford's decision making and ball security issues persist? -- msc166 (DKPS)
Q: How big of a gap is there between QB1 & QB2? What are the chances we see Roberson get some snaps in certain scenarios this year, similar to Levis' use in years past? -- Richie (Twitter)
A: Lots of questions, obviously, about Clifford entering the season. I'll answer these together. Sean Clifford is the most important player to his team in ALL of college football this season. If he's really good, this PSU team has a chance to be outstanding. If Clifford is average or gets hurt, you bring 7-5 or even 6-6 onto the table.
There's a massive dropoff from Clifford to Ta'Quan Roberson, who has only played a few snaps and thrown just one pass in college. Maybe Roberson can be really good with experience, but this isn't the kind of schedule where you throw an unproven QB to the wolves and hope for the best. I also don't think Roberson gets many snaps at all, because he has to stay healthy just in case something happens to Clifford.
So, it'll be Clifford's show all season. I have ENORMOUS faith in Mike Yurcich's system. But as a colleague said on my radio show a few weeks ago, the system can't throw the ball for Clifford. He has to make the right reads, put the ball on the money and not turn it over. Can he do all of that facing a very difficult schedule? I am not sold yet.
But the one thing we do need to keep in mind is that Clifford won't have to do everything himself. The running backs and receivers are good, and Clifford just needs to get the ball into the playmakers' hands and let them do their part.
Q: Mike Yurcich will be a head coach probably before too long. How long will he be with PSU? -- Garrett (email)
A: I'm going two years. Three max. If Yurcich really is as good as everyone thinks, it won't take him long to establish the Penn State offense as a high-octane scoring machine, just like Joe Moorhead did in 2016. Put another way, if Yurcich is still at Penn State after three years, then there's a good chance he will have underachieved to a large degree. Because as long as he does his job well, there will be head coaching opportunities coming his way.
Q: Does this season simply bowl down to how well Clifford plays and how well the D line comes together? -- Cory (Twitter)
Q: How does our DL look and matchup against that big, powerful Wisconsin OL? -- ctrpgh76 (DKPS)
A: These are both defensive line questions, and yes, without question, that unit will play a huge role in determining how this season goes. If we're keeping track, it's 1A. Clifford and 1B. D-line. I've already picked Wisconsin to beat Penn State, because I don't believe the D-line will quite be up to challenge on the road against a good running team that also can throw the ball. The question will be how much the D-line can improve as the season goes on.
There's really not great depth on the line, like we've seen at PSU for many years now going back to the Larry Johnson days, and that's a big factor. One thing the Lions have always done is rotate guys in and out on the line, keeping everyone fresh for a long game. Brent Pry may not be able to do as much of that this year, which could lead to some fatigue and poor tackling later in games.
Q: Do you think Saturday’s game will be an accurate representation of the type of offense Mike Yurcich wants to run? I wouldn’t be surprised to see Penn State conservatively try and maximize time of possession and attempt to limit the number of offensive chances for Graham Mertz and the Badgers. Penn State’s offense could look drastically different by the midpoint of the season. -- 409 (DKPS)
A: This is an interesting theory. You could be right. I would rather see the offense come out and try to be what it truly is going to be -- throwing the ball a lot and taking shots downfield. I would compare it to a pitcher who should be trying to win with his best stuff, not throwing junk just to try and throw the hitter off. Penn State's offense -- and I'm assuming Yurcich's offense in the past -- has been at its best when it stays aggressive and tries to move the ball quickly.
Remember all of the failed attempts at 4-minute offense in recent years, where the Lions needed 1-2 first downs to try and milk the clock and yet couldn't get them? I don't want to see that Saturday. Be aggressive early, start fast, try and get a lead and force Wisconsin to play from behind, something it usually doesn't like to do with its running focus.
Q: Welcome aboard Cory. Are you still doing local radio and newspaper work in Altoona and covering the Curve, or is this your exclusive role now? -- PennStaterinVA
A: I have been blown away by all of the kind words from so many people since joining DK Pittsburgh Sports last week. This is now my primary job, but I do still host my afternoon sports talk show on WRTA in Altoona. The show airs from 4-5 p.m. each weekday on 98.5 FM and 1240 AM in Altoona, and you can listen to it online or by downloading the Lightner Communications app.
As for the Altoona Curve, I have covered the team for 22 years and probably always will in some capacity. I still cover the Curve for the Altoona Mirror on a freelance basis, and hopefully that relationship will continue for years to come.
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
ON WISCONSIN
Talk about some high praise, Penn State safety Jaquan Brisker compared Badgers quarterback Graham Mertz to none other than Russell Wilson, who starred at Wisconsin a decade ago.
"Wisconsin probably hasn’t had a quarterback like this since Russell Wilson," Brisker said on a Zoom call Wednesday.
Asked a bit later to explain that comment, Brisker said this:
"Just the way he controls the offense. Watching film, I’ve seen that he can throw the ball, he can throw it deep, he can throw it outside, inside and he reads defenses. I also saw that he’ll be able to run when he wants to.
"From what I’ve seen from him, I can’t really remember a Wisconsin quarterback like this since Russell Wilson. So I feel like he’s balanced like Russell."
To be clear, Graham Mertz is NOT Russell Wilson or anything close to that -- not yet anyway. Wilson was spectacular at Wisconsin in 2011, throwing for 33 TDs with only four interceptions.
But what Brisker is talking about is that Mertz is not the traditional Wisconsin quarterback who is only asked to manage the game and hand off to the star running back. Mertz was a 4-star recruit and the No. 3 pro-style QB in the country out of high school, and he's the highest-rated quarterback recruit Wisconsin has ever had.
But Mertz is still just a sophomore, and he was up and down last year. He completed 61.1 percent for 1,238 yards, nine TDs and five interceptions in five games last season.
The one thing Penn State's defense must account for, though, is that Mertz is a weapon at quarterback, not just someone who will hand the ball off. So as the Lions are gearing up to stop the run, they had better be ready for him to throw the ball a good bit, as well.
EARLY START
It's a noon kickoff Saturday, 11 .a.m. local time in Wisconsin. Penn State fans are well aware of the team's struggles in early starts on the road over the years.
How does this PSU team make sure it's ready to go for the early game?
"That’s the word of the week — start fast," Brisker said. "No matter what time it is, football is football."
CHIP ON SHOULDER
The defensive line is the biggest question mark on this PSU team, and the linemen apparently have heard people say that.
Defensive tackle PJ Mustipher knows the line has a good opportunity to prove itself Saturday.
"It’s gonna be a challenge for us," Mustipher said. "We want to show the country what we’re about as far as our defensive line goes. We have a huge chip on our shoulder. What better way to go in and challenge ourselves."
SAFETY STARTER
James Franklin disclosed this Wednesday night after practice:
Penn State coach James Franklin said Ji’Ayir Brown will be the other starter at safety next to Jaquan Brisker.
— Daniel Gallen (@danieljtgallen) September 1, 2021
