Week Five: Penn State 44, Minnesota 14

Wow. There are not words to describe this win for Penn State. I was fairly confident that Penn State would be able to beat Minnesota and take an important step towards the success of the past. However, I could have never imagined that Penn State's offense would send the Gophers home with a 30-point woodshed defeat. And while PSU's offense has received most of the attention, the PSU defense turned in a spectacular performance, shutting down Laurence Maroney, holding him to just 76 yards. Happy Valley's "Heisman Graveyard" now has a new member. Minnesota managed just one meaningful TD, at the end of the first half when Bryan Cupito hit Ernie Wheelwright for a 49-yard TD reception. The Gophers' other touchdown came long after the game had been decided. Penn State's offense was simply brilliant both running and passing. Tony Hunt went over 100 yards rushing for the second time this season and scored two touchdowns. Michael Robinson also ran for over 100 yards. Derrick Williams is contributing just as Penn State had hoped, scoring two rushing TD's of his own. The vertical passing game wasn't as dominant as it was today and the Nittany Lions showed balance and adjustment on offense. Minnesota committed six players to cover Penn State's four wide receiver sets and the Lions made them pay by running the ball all over them. Hunt looks like he is a star in the making, he just needs to get the ball. Another important stat from the game, Michael Robinson did not turn the ball over once after turning it over four times in the first half against Northwestern. If the Lions are going to beat Ohio State next week, Robinson will once again have to play turnover-free football. The low notes from the game- Deon Butler was open several times and Robinson either misfired or Butler dropped the ball. Derrick Williams and Justin King have gotten most of the attention from the media but Deon Butler has really come out of nowhere as a fast deep threat. This is clearly Penn State's best offense in several years. With Anthony Morelli at the helm next season, I expect to see PSU's best offense since 1994.