Penn State’s offense is officially fun to watch again. The unit has put together back-to-back strong performances — although it hit a lull in the second half last week — against the Purdue Boilermakers and Washington Huskies.
The most exciting part about the scoring uptick is that it has happened without wide receiver Koby Howard. Quarterback Rocco Becht finally looks comfortable playing against Big Ten competition, and it has paid off in a big way for the Nittany Lions.
However, they won’t have a cakewalk this week, as Minnesota has one of the better defenses in the conference. It only allows 20.5 points per game, and it is just below the Nittany Lions in terms of yardage allowed, currently giving up 305 yards per game.
Let’s compare Penn State’s
offense to Minnesota’s defense and see who has the edge.
Yards per carry
Penn State offense: 4.15 yards per carry
Minnesota defense: 3.88 yards per carry
These numbers suggest that the blue and white have a mediocre running game and Minnesota has an excellent run defense. However, the Nittany Lions have been running the ball much more effectively lately, and they could pose a threat this weekend.
Penn State’s running backs have been averaging 6.2 yards per carry over the last two games. The rushes have been much more explosive, and the running backs are finding yards more consistently in the power running game. This type of balance between the run and the pass could give the team an advantage going into Week 11.
Time of possession
Penn State offense: 32 minutes
Minnesota defense: 29 minutes
These two teams have nearly identical average times of possession. This could mean that whoever is able to establish the run and control the game will have a strong chance of winning.
We just saw Penn State own the time of possession battle against Purdue a couple of weeks ago, and it resulted in a 31-17 victory that felt a lot bigger than what the scoreboard suggested. It’ll be hard to get to 43 minutes of possession again, but keeping Minnesota’s defense on the field will be key.
Fourth-down conversions
Penn State offense: 77.8% conversion rate
Minnesota defense: allow 55.6% conversion rate
The fourth-down battle is something Penn State should always have the edge in, as it converts 77.8% of its attempts. The Nittany Lions have been great at converting these short-yardage situations, and it really helps to give the offense second and third chances to stay on the field.
Conversely, the Golden Gophers struggle with stopping teams on fourth down. Getting an extra set of downs when you would have normally punted also keeps your offense on the field longer, circling back to the time of possession battle.
If Penn State wins this area of the game, then it can kill two birds with one stone.
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This article originally appeared on Nittany Lions Wire: Penn State holds key advantages over Minnesota’s defense
