Wide receiver struggles made Lions vulnerable

January 6, 2019

The receivers spoiled the season for Penn State. It’s easy to just say, “they dropped a lot of passes,” which obviously hurt the team. But it was so much more than that. Connect the dots with me here. The Nittany Lion offense was sensational the past two years because it could score from any point on the field in a hurry, most often with a big pass play setting everything up. This year, though, the receivers simply were not reliable catching the ball, especially deep balls and 50-50 balls. They were pretty terrible, in fact, with about three dozen drops. So, Trace ...

PSU’s future at quarterback up in air after McSorley

December 30, 2018

ORLANDO — I’m giving this away a day ahead of time, but we have a terrific cartoon from the uber-talented Bill Bettwy in our Penn State Gameday magazine tomorrow, featuring the Nittany Lion on the ground grabbing Trace McSorley’s leg trying to hold onto him as the senior quarterback waves goodbye. Check out the cartoon (and all of the other great Citrus Bowl preview content) in Gameday. Also, keep that image in mind going forward to next season, because there could be some very interesting times at quarterback for PSU. There are always questions when transitioning from an ...

Big Ten teams at fault, not system

December 4, 2018

The simplest solution for any given problem is usually the correct one — a concept known as Occam’s razor — yet we like to overcomplicate stuff and make things more difficult than they need to be when something happens that we don’t like. Let’s use the College Football Playoff as an example, and more specifically that, for the second year in a row, the Big Ten has been shut out of the Final Four. Oh no! That just can’t happen! Something’s gotta change! Some, including Penn State coach James Franklin, are saying the conference needs to re-evaluate the way it does things ...

Signing off: Wilson much more than a broadcaster

November 27, 2018

The Curve are losing one of their most important employees, one who has done a marvelous job working in the present while making sure that the past will always be remembered in the future. What does all that mean? The job of a minor league broadcaster is one of the most tireless positions ...

USC could be interested in Franklin, but would he go?

November 19, 2018

This is the final week of the regular season, so the silly season is already starting up. The rumor mill and speculation season with regards to coaching moves. If I had to guess, I’d say James Franklin will be Penn State’s coach for 10 more years. At least. He’s not going to the NFL. Bad fit. There aren’t many other college jobs that are better than Penn State, for Franklin in particular since he’s “a Pennsylvania boy with a Penn State heart.” So, where would Franklin go? And why? Well, one of the possible answers popped up late Saturday night. USC. Los ...

Is 9-3 a good season?

November 12, 2018

Penn State has made it through the gauntlet part of the schedule, and with only Rutgers and Maryland remaining, a 9-3 regular season seems to be a safe bet. Which begs the question: Is a 9-3 season at Penn State considered a success? Yes. Absolutely. Without question. Silly to think otherwise. Why would I ask such a dumb question, you say? Well, what if those three losses are to Ohio State, Michigan and Michigan State — the three most important games on the schedule every year because they are huge division contests? Still a successful season? Yes. Abso … Uh, ...