Current Head Coach
Watch what Penn State head coach James Franklin said about Ohio State ahead of the game Saturday https://t.co/exvbwgypVo
— Buckeyes Wire (@BuckeyesWire) November 19, 2019
James Franklin – 78-37 overall, 54-22 at Penn State
Offensive Style
Penn State uses a lot of spread option read looks that are very Run-Pass-Option (RPO) heavy. It can run power out of the formation, but will look to get the quarterback involved in the run game by reading the defensive end. From there, there are options if quarterback and Ohio native Sean Clifford doesn’t hand off to the running back. He can read the defense and keep it himself, or throw to a wide receiver releasing on a block downfield.
It’s an offense built on creating mismatches and exploiting the weaknesses of what the defense shows. Former Trace McSorley ran it to perfection and Clifford has been a pleasant surprise with his ability to command the offense as well. Ohio State must remain assignment and gap sound, all while keeping contain on the outside.
Defensive Style
The Nittany Lions are a base 4-3 defense much in the same mold as Ohio State, but will use more of a downhill attack to stop the run. It’ll bring safeties and corners up at times to put extra men in the box and will break into multiple formations out of that look.
Defensive coordinator Brent Pry could dial up a zone blitz, a cover two, or man-to-man with no safety help. It’ll be very important to get the pre-snap reads correct for Justin Fields and the offense to be successful.
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