Will JoePa finally win at The Shoe?

#3 Penn State @ #9 Ohio State
Saturday, October 25 - 8:00 EST
Columbus, Ohio - Ohio Stadium
Penn State -2.5

Summary
The last time Joe Paterno won in Columbus, Jimmy Carter was president...Spetember 16, 1978, the Nittany Lions shutout Woody Hayes 19-0...in that game, Hayes shocked the crowd by starting a freshman quarterback named Art Schlichter...

Since joining the Big Ten, Paterno is 0-7 at Ohio Stadium...he has come close a few times, most notably was in 2002 when Penn State held the Buckeyes without an offensive touchdown, only to lose 13-7...the last time JoePa was in Columbus, he had to leave the field twice for bathrooms breaks...

The Penn State offense is engineered by Youngstown, Ohio native Daryll Clark who has thrown 11 TDs this season...the run game is led by Evan Royster (photo, below) who has 893 yards and 10 TDS...Deon Butler, Derrick Williams, and Jordan Norwood are the main weapons at the receiver position...

The one who got away is now the one who stands in the way - Terrelle Pryor...during the winter, Pryor, from Jeanette, Pa., played Penn State like Charlie Daniels plays a fiddle...thinking they had a chance at him, Penn State assistant Tom Bradley was basically living in the small Pa. town...in the end Pryor wanted to be a Buckeye...now he has a chance to show up his possible teammates once again...

The Buckeyes like to run the ball with Chris Wells and Dan Herron...when they go to the air, it is usually going to Brian Robiske...the defense is loaded with big name players, who have yet to come up big in a national game...with his win last week against Michigan State, Jim Tressel became the fastest Big Ten coach to reach 80 total wins in his first 8 seasons...Tressel is currently the Big Ten's second winningest coach all-time with a winning percentage of .825 which is .08 behind Fielding Yost of Michigan...

Quick Numbers
Offensive Numbers
PSU - Rushing per game - 234 yards
OSU - Rushing per game - 182 yards

PSU - Passing per game - 248 yards
OSU - Passing per game - 140 yards

Defensive Numbers
PSU - Rushing allowed - 103 yards
OSU - Rushing allowed - 97 yards

PSU - Passing allowed - 159 yards
OSU - Passing allowed - 168 yards

- Over the last 3 years, Penn State is 1-5 against the spread when the line is +3 to -3
- Over the last 3 years, Ohio State is 4-0 against the spread when the line is +3 to -3
- Since 1992, Ohio State is 7-0 against the spread and straight up at home against Penn State

What the experts say
The Gold Sheet - Penn State 27-20
Power Sweep - Penn State 21-20
Point Wise - Penn State 27-20

Penn State Nittany Lions (8-0) - Head Coach Joe Paterno
The following are the Penn State game notes for the Ohio State game...

Penn State Game Notes

For more on Penn State football, check out the blog - Black Shoes Diary...

Black Shoes Diary

Ron Musselman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes how Penn State has been able to vanquish past Big Ten demons - is OSU next?... "Long before the season began, many were predicting a Red October for Penn State. The gloomy forecast was based on the Nittany Lions' past performances against Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio State and the fact that the Lions had to play those three traditional Big Ten powers during a three-week stretch. Penn State was a combined 5-16 against that trio since 2000." ...

Ron Musselman

Jeff Rice of the State College Centre Daily writes about Penn State's woes at Ohio Stadium... "In seven games against Ohio State in the Horseshoe since 1993, the Nittany Lions have managed a total of five touchdowns. In those games, the Buckeyes have scored eight touchdowns via interception, fumble or kick returns." ...

Jeff Rice

Musselman writes how Penn State tried hard to get Terrelle Pryor - now he stands in their way to a perfect season... "Instead, Pryor, the most sought-after high school recruit in the country, chose Ohio State. Instead of playing for Paterno, who sometimes has been reluctant to start freshmen athletes, Pryor, 19, is calling the plays for another national football powerhouse." ...

Ron Musselman

Ohio State Buckeyes (7-1) - Head Coach Jim Tressel
The following are the Ohio State game notes for the Penn State game...

Ohio State Game Notes

For more information about Ohio State football, check out the blog - Around the Oval...

Around the Oval

Adam Rittenberg of ESPN's Blog Nation writes how Ohio State is playing the no respect card... "Added Buckeyes cornerback Malcolm Jenkins: "If we could come out with a win, it would force some people to respect us again because we pretty much don't have any right now." ...

Adam Rittenberg

Former Ohio State walk-on Drew Norman gives his thoughts about the upcoming game in the Columbus Dispatch... "Saturday will be the eighth time Jim Tressel has led Ohio State into battle against Joe Paterno and the Nittany Lions. The first seven games between JoePa and Coach Tressel have produced some of the best games in recent memory in not only the Big Ten, but the entire country. When the Buckeyes and Lions get together, there are several things you're guaranteed to see." ...

Drew Norman

Tim May of the Columbus Dispatch writes how Jim Tressel wants a Sea of Red on Saturday... "Jim Tressel showed up at his weekly media luncheon today wearing a bright scarlet jacket and urged Ohio State fans to follow his lead when Penn State comes to town Saturday." ...

Tim May

Doug Lesmerises of the (Cleveland) Plain Dealer writes about Youngstown, Ohio native and Penn State starting quarterback Daryll Clark... "In a season in which Ohio State coach Jim Tressel quickly benched senior drop-back quarterback Todd Boeckman in favor of more mobile freshman Terrelle Pryor, No. 3 Penn State enters as an example of what can happen when you stick with a veteran." ...

Doug Lesmerises

Lesmerises writes about Penn State and their standard uniform and how Malcolm Jenkins did not want to go there... "That's why when Nike creative director Todd Van Horne and his people meet with coach Joe Paterno and the Penn State administration, they don't go in advocating change." ...

Doug Lesmerises