Penn State defensive end Abdul Carter (11) has heated up in November, leaping up to No. 2 in the nation in tackles for loss. This week Carter was named a finalist for the Nagurski Trophy and Lombardi Award as the country’s top defensive player and top lineman, respectively.
Barry Reeger | AP file photo
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Penn State has spent this week trying as much as possible to not think about the past or the future.
The former should be easier for the Nittany Lions than it will be for their fans, who have twice seen their national title hopes wrecked by Minnesota in November, once in 1999 and again in 2019.
A more pressing issue for the current players and coaches is focusing on Saturday’s game against the Golden Gophers and not the No. 4 ranking that has the program in line for its first College Football Playoff berth.
Because another late-season face-plant against the Gophers could potentially keep the Lions out of the bracket entirely.
An 11-1 record is a lock to make the expanded 12-team field. But there will likely be enough 10-2 teams between the big Ten and the SEC that not all of them will be able to land an at-large bid. And with Penn State’s best win on the resume coming at home against now-No. 25 Illinois, that might not stack up favorably against the SEC programs.
For the Lions, it’s probably best not to think about it.
“I want our team to be totally focused on Minnesota,” coach James Franklin said in response to a question about how the Big Ten schedule has prepared the team to compete for a playoff spot. “… If I start talking about things other than Minnesota, then so do our coaches and so do the players. And we lose focus, and then we come out and don’t play well.”
None of Penn State’s players were alive for the 1999 game in Happy Valley that saw the No. 2 Lions lose 24-23 to Minnesota, sending the Lions on a spiral from 9-0 to 9-3 and ushering in an era of four seasons out of five without a bowl game.
Penn State was 8-0 and also ranked fourth by the CFP committee in 2019 headed into its last trip to Minneapolis, a 31-26 loss in which a late rally came up just short.
The Lions have three players remaining who were on the roster for that game. Guard Sal Wormley and defensive linemen Dvon J-Thomas and Smith Vilbert were true freshmen who didn’t play that week in November. All of them are using the extra sixth year afforded them by the 2020 pandemic season, which did not count against anyone’s eligibility.
Only Franklin and his two longest-tenured assistants — cornerbacks coach Terry Smith and running backs coach Ja’Juan Seider — were on staff for that loss. On the other sideline, P.J. Fleck is still at the helm of the Gophers.
“A long time ago, different team, a lot of different coaches, things like that,” Franklin said. “But obviously we understand what the environment will be like. We’ve got to understand what the stadium will be like, weather that time of year, how this coach builds his roster and how this coach builds his team and how they want to play their winning style of football — all those things, yes.
“But different players, a lot of different coaches in both organizations.”
Fleck, likewise, wasn’t going to dwell on a game from five years ago. The Gophers were undefeated themselves when they upset the Lions, only to follow that up with losses to Iowa and Wisconsin, ending that season on a down note.
“We need our best playmakers to play their best. Penn State’s going to need their playmakers to be their best,” Fleck said. “That’s what happens in November.”
THREE AND OUT
PROTECTING THE BALL
Franklin said there wasn’t much to apply from the 2019 game that wouldn’t be obvious for any other week.
Right at the top of that list is turnovers.
Five years ago, the Lions threw three interceptions in the loss, including one in the end zone on a desperation throw with time winding down.
Minnesota may not have a All-America, sure-fire NFL draft pick in the secondary like Antoine Winfield Jr. was in 2019. But the group has 16 interceptions this season, one off the national lead. Five are courtesy of Koi Perich, one of the top true freshmen in the country this year at any position.
“Turnovers and explosive plays will be a major factor this weekend,” Franklin said. “We have to protect the football and we have to get better at creating turnovers.
“I give P.J. Fleck a ton of credit. We grew up in the game on a similar plane, and you have to learn not to lose before you learn to win. Check the right boxes, do the same things in terms of winning those categories.”
Both quarterbacks in the game have done well in limiting mistakes this season. Drew Allar famously set an NCAA record for most passes to start a career without an interception before tossing his first in late October 2023.
Allar has five interceptions in 2024. Three came in an overtime win over USC last month, with the last one coming on a Hail Mary heave on the final play of regulation.
“We’re just going to have to be disciplined and stick to our game plan,” Allar said.
Minnesota’s Max Brosmer has just four picks this season, his first in the Twin Cities since transferring in from FCS New Hampshire.
In 10 games apiece Allar (2,253) and Brosmer (2,251) have nearly identical passing yardage numbers. Allar (16) is slightly ahead of Brosmer (14) in passing touchdowns.
PRAISE FOR ALLEN
Penn State may not be forcing turnovers at the same elite rate as the Gophers, but the Lions defense has remained strong under first-year coordinator Tom Allen.
Outside of rocky first-half performances against Bowling Green and USC, Penn State has been its usual stingy self on defense, ranking second in the Big Ten in scoring (13.6 ppg) and third in yardage (272.6 ypg).
The sack numbers had nowhere to go but down after Manny Diaz’s unit led the country in 2023, helping him land the head job at Duke.
But the Lions are pleased with the work done by Allen, who doesn’t quite have the same talent level to work with that Diaz did — especially after losing an NFL-caliber safety like Kevin Winston Jr. to injury in the early going.
“I think what happens sometimes is — I don’t care what profession you’re in — who you follow plays a role in how you’re perceived,” Franklin said. “He follows Manny Diaz, and we had one of the top defenses in the country. So you come in here, and I think defensively we were ranked anywhere between two, three or four. So unless you’re one, it doesn’t feel like you got a whole lot better.
“But I think he’s done a really good job of coming in here and adapting. We have one of the best defenses in the country. I think our defense is our highest-rated unit and no one’s talking about it. … We’re holding onto a lot of things we’ve been doing and then putting his own stamp on it. He probably had the toughest follow. Give him a ton of credit. Very different personality and approach. But, I think he’s doing a great job, and our whole defensive staff is.”
CARTER A FINALIST
Leading that defensive unit is Abdul Carter, who has thrived in his transition from linebacker to defensive end, leading the Big Ten in tackles for loss with 17.5, which includes 8.0 sacks.
His efforts were recognized in full this week as the Philadelphia native was named a finalist for the Nagurski Trophy as the nation’s top defensive player and the Lombardi Award, given to the country’s top lineman on either side of the ball.
Carter is up against Texas defensive back Jahdae Barron, Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham and South Carolina edge rusher Kyle Kennard for the Nagurski. The Lombardi finalists are Carter, Kennard and a pair of offensive tackles in Texas’ Kelvin Banks and Will Campbell.
“He is impacting the game in a number of ways, which creates opportunities for other guys on our defensive line and within our defense and causes a lot of headaches,” Franklin said. “So he’s been great. His attitude’s been great. He is coachable. He is becoming more and more of a leader every single day.”
In last week’s win over Purdue, Franklin was most pleased by a play where Carter went from rushing the passer to disengaging and running across the field to hunt down a receiver from behind on a screen pass to get a stop on third down.
Carter has been on the radar as a potential first round draft pick in the spring, same as one of the players he’ll be battling on Saturday in Minnesota left tackle Aireontae Ersery.