DC Metro Sports - Around Happy (Once Again) Valley, with Penn State Football

Written by Mike Pettigano
Sunday, 23 April 2006
Blue/White Post-Game Report April 18 – April 23, 2006 If the state of Pennsylvania is ever in a drought, just schedule a Blue/White game for when you need the rain. For the third time in four years, the annual scrimmage at Beaver Stadium was hit by rainy weather. Unlike last year, however, the rain was constant from Friday evening through Sunday morning, saturating the Nittany Valley. Yet, not being deterred by the weather, approximately 18,000 braved the cold and wet and watched one of the more curious games in recent Blue/White history. OFFENSE On a day when the weather conditions would make you think that the running game would be the mainstay of the offensive play calling, it was actually the Penn State passing game which lit up the field from the first snap. Galen Hall and Jay Paterno kept the chains moving most of the afternoon, along with a few very nice big plays down the field. The running game was nothing special, but what do you expect with your two top guys out. Also, I think that the wide receivers will be the best young unit in the Big Ten. They looked just as good as and even better than last year, and I could spend hours just writing about how good they look, but I won’t. When Anthony Morelli was in at quarterback, the play calling, and formations were noticeably different from 2005. Last year, in both the Blue/White game and the regular season, it was always in the backs of everyone’s minds that Mike Robinson could scoot if he was in trouble in the pocket or if no one was open. This year, the team can’t rely on the quarterback’s legs nearly as much, and it showed. You know what though; I really don’t think that will matter. Anthony Morelli looked just about as good as any veteran quarterback in the Big Ten Conference. He took the first team offense right down the field on the opening possession, completing 3-of-4 passes for 42 yards, including a strike down the middle to Jordan Norwood for 36 yards. Tony Hunt was also in on the drive, gaining 24 yards on his first two carries, but stalled once inside the red-zone, losing five yards on two carries. One of those carries was on fourth-and-goal, which Hunt couldn’t get around the edge and lost five yards. Hunt looked noticeably slower, since his high ankle sprain is in the final stages of recovery. He should be 100 percent by summer workouts. After giving the ball away on fourth down, the White offense went three-and-out forcing a punt. Incidentally, Derrick Williams was back to field the punt; more later. After a penalty, Derrick Williams took an end around for 17 yards, and actually looked faster than I remember, but then again, I haven’t seen him live since October. The very next play was another outstanding grab by Jordan Norwood, fighting the ball away from safety Spencer Ridenhour. That’s pretty much where it started to get me worried, because again from inside the ten, the first team offense couldn’t punch it in. BranDon Snow tried a few runs up the gut, but didn’t square his shoulders and was ridden along the goal line, keeping him out. Then, Morelli tried to leap over center, and fumbled the ball on a nice hit from Tyrell Sales. On Anthony Morelli’s next series, he led the offense to a 39-yard Kevin Kelly field goal. Morelli was 4-for-5, netting 39 yards. But just when you thought Morelli was looking good, he began to look outstanding. With the Blue squad facing 80 yards to go with 57 seconds left in the first half, Anthony Morelli looked like he could have done it in his sleep. With passes to Norwood, Williams and Kevin Cousins Morelli completed 5-of-6 passes for 79 yards. BranDon Snow finally got one in for the touchdown from the one as time expired. It was easily the most impressive drive of the game by either squad. Morelli finished the day 13-for-16 for 191 yards and no interceptions. Spotted with some nice plays, the second half was a bit uneventful, with either Paul Cianciolo or Kevin Suhey playing all but one possession. On the day, the two backups went 6-for-15 with an interception, and 9-for-14 respectively. Mike Hart also saw some snaps, but didn’t complete a pass and threw an interception. The running game was nothing special, but what do you expect with your two top guys out. Also, I think that the wide receivers will be the best young unit in the Big Ten. They looked just as good as and even better than last year, and I could spend hours just writing about how good they look, but I won’t. The quarterback situation was the biggest thing coming into this game, and it was actually a win-lose situation coming out of it. Anthony Morelli looked like a future All-American, but there was little or no confidence felt coming from the backups. It should be an interesting race once the new guys, especially star recruit Pat Devlin gets here. DEFENSE Overshadowed by Anthony Morelli’s outstanding passing effort was the great production from the defenses on both squads. Most of the fans who were jeering at the fact that the Blue offense was unable to get any points in their first two red-zone trips, failed to realize that it wasn’t so much that the offense was unproductive, but it was the defense that stood up tall. When BranDon Snow couldn’t find a hole up the middle, it was because guys like Chris Rogers and Tyrell Sales were there to plug them perfectly. Also, there was A LOT of penetration by the defensive lines for the Blue and the White, considering how much talent there is on the offensive lines. The ends and tackles getting into the backfield came mainly on run plays, but that could have just been because Rodney Kinlaw and Matt Hahn had a tough time hitting the holes quick enough. The defense knew that the running game could be shut down, and they played like it. Knowledge Timmons, a red-shirt freshman from last year’s class of speedsters, announced his arrival into the secondary with a bang. He grabbed both of the day’s interceptions, one which came in the end zone as the game wound down. Timmons made it clear that he’s in the thick of the battle for starting corner, opposite Justin King this fall. Without All-American Paul Pozluszny, the linebackers still played with a fire. Dan Connor nearly picked off a pass early in the game, and Tyrell Sales forced Anthony Morelli to fumble on his dive into the end zone in the first quarter. Joe Cianciolo and Jerome Hayes always seemed to be in on the play. Hayes has been praised by Paterno and the coaches as being the next great linebacker at Penn State. That’s saying something when you have a consensus All-American returning in Pozluszny, and future (I believe) All-American Dan Connor with two years left. Although there’s been a lot of buzz surrounding Penn State’s interest in using the 3-4 or 3-3-5 defenses this spring, not too much was seen in the Blue/White game. During the pre-game press conference, Joe Paterno didn’t seem too worried about what may or may not happen with the defensive schemes this fall. "It depends on the personnel you are looking at. We had a chance to look at it in practice," Paterno said. "We certainly have the staff that has had enough experience and is flexible enough.” Ok, Joe. We’ll take your word for it. COMING SOON I want to start having a regular “Ask…” section soon, so please email me questions you have about what’s on your mind for Penn State, Big Ten, or just football in general. Thanks. That wraps this week’s “Around Happy (Once Again) Valley, with Penn State Football.” Come back every Sunday night/Monday morning for more weekly round-ups of what’s going on in Nittany Lion football. And as always, please e-mail me your thoughts, opinions and questions at

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