5-stars: The best and worst of Ohio State’s win over Penn State

What went well, what didn’t for the Buckeyes? #GoBucks

For four quarters, Ohio State football dominated on the defensive side, while its offense did just enough to defeat Penn State, 20-12, in front of a home crowd in Columbus.

It wasn’t all easy for the Buckeyes, especially when you score just two touchdowns. The Nittany Lion defense should get plenty of credit for part of the output, as it was statistically one of the best in the country entering the contest.

As with every game, we take a look at who was the best, five stars, and the worst, one star, and everything in between in Ohio State’s slugfest win over visiting Penn State.

Oregon next on official visit list for 4-star 2025 QB Malik Washington

For now, he is busy making his rounds of official visits at interested schools.

Most college football programs are still focused on recruits from the class of 2024 for now, but it’s never too early to start thinking about your next quarterback prospect. One of the top recruits in the class of 2025 to watch is Archbishop Spalding (Md.) four-star QB Malik Washington.

Washington (6-foot-5, 200 pounds) still has a ton of time to decide. For now, he is busy making his rounds of official visits at interested schools. He’s already been on-campus at Penn State, Ohio State, Virginia Tech and Maryland.

Next up on the list is Oregon, per Adam Friedman at Rivals.

“Oregon is the next visit for Washington. The Maryland native will be in Eugene on Saturday. Penn State, Ohio State, Virginia Tech and Maryland have already hosted Washington this year and this trip to Oregon could be his last for a while, since the season is about to start.”

As a Sophomore, Washington threw for 2,979 yards and 29 touchdowns. He also threw eight interceptions and finished with a 102.5 QB rate. As a rusher, he added another 167 yards and four touchdowns on 33 carries.

247Sports has no ranking for him as of yet, but Washington is ranked in the top 15 at his position by On3, ESPN and Rivals, where he places as high as fifth in the state of Maryland and No. 166 nationally in the class of 2025.

We’ll see if his visit to Eugene changes anything. Right now, the Ducks are a long shot, though. On3’s prediction model currently has Penn State (76.1%) as the heavy favorite to get his commitment, followed by Rutgers (10.3%) and Virginia (8.8%).

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Penn State making ‘biggest push’ for 4-star DT T.A. Cunningham

He has a top five list, but Penn State is making the biggest push for his commitment.

Recruiting high school football talent is always a battle that continues all year, but the competition for interior defensive linemen in the class of 2024 is particularly fierce right now. A prospect to watch who will soon be making a decision is Miami Central (Fla.) four-star defensive lineman T.A. Cunningham.

So far, Cunningham has received a stunning 62 college offers. According to Adam Gorney at Rivals he has a top-five list, but Penn State is making the biggest push for his commitment.

“Settled now at Miami (Fla.) Central after a tumultuous recruitment and high school experience, Cunningham now has a top five of Penn State, Oklahoma, Miami, Texas A&M and Michigan but one program is “definitely recruiting me the hardest out of anyone,” he said. The Nittany Lions are making the biggest push for Cunningham, who is originally from Georgia, transferred to a school in California and is now in Miami. A decision could be coming soon, too.”

On3’s prediction model agrees that the Nittany Lions are the team to beat in Cunningham’s recruitment. They’re a dominant favorite at 84.5%, while the second-best odds belong to Georgia at just 2.1%.

Both On3 and 247Sports have Cunningham ranked No. 28 at his position. ESPN (No. 16) and Rivals (No. 12) have him considerably higher, though. Nationally, ESPN has him at No. 116 overall.

Cunningham reportedly plans to make his college commitment public this Saturday, July 22.

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Report: Notre Dame to hire Penn State’s Micah Shrewsberry

Welcome to Notre Dame, Coach!

I’m not sure if its fitting or if its the exact opposite that a couple of traditional football powerhouses had their own March madness in regards to their head basketball coach.

Penn State reportedly made [autotag]Micah Shrewsberry[/autotag] a generous offer to remain its head coach in the wake of his being courted by Notre Dame. According to multiple reports, Shrewsberry has decided to leave Penn State for Notre Dame.

This comes after he spent two seasons at Penn State. He is fresh off an NCAA Tournament appearance that included a first-round upset of seventh-seeded Texas A&M. Penn State finished 23-14 and reached the Big Ten Tournament championship game, in which it took top-seeded Purdue to the wire.

Shrewsberry is considered a mastermind offensively as the Nittany Lions ranked 13th in adjusted offensive efficiency this season. The 46-year-old spent the majority of his coaching career in the state of Indiana. He was an assistant at Wabash, DePauw, Butler and Indiana-South Bend.  He also spent more than half a decade with the Boston Celtics.

More on this breaking news story as it develops. In the meantime, enjoy a few photos of Shrewsberry during his time at Penn State below.

Related: What to like about Shrewsberry hire for Notre Dame fans

Penn State’s coach used the Ted Lasso ‘Believe’ sign to hype his team up after NCAA tourney win

Penn State has its guys believing. Ted Lasso would be proud.

Penn State men’s basketball head coach Micah Shrewsberry borrowed from the world’s most inspirational television coach to hype up his locker room after its big March Madness win.

After the Nittany Lions took down Texas A&M in the first round of the 2023 NCAA tournament on Thursday night, 76-59, Shrewsberry gave his team a Ted Lasso-inspired slap on the show’s yellow “Believe” poster.

The team has reportedly been traveling around with the poster as a token of good luck, as a February losing streak turned into the Nittany Lions winning nine of their last 11 games.

Penn State is dancing for the first time 2011, and the team made the most of it with Thursday’s major win in the opening round.

We can imagine Coach Lasso would be proud to see Coach Shrewsberry using one of his main motivational techniques to inspire his team.

No. 10 Penn State will next face No. 2 Texas on Saturday night in the round of 32. Will Shrewsberry be able to inspire the Nittany Lions to defeat a formidable Longhorns team and advance to next week’s games?

Well, if they can channel some of that AFC Richmond underdog spirit, perhaps they’ll survive and advance once more.

Rutgers football: Week 12 MVPs

Although this was not as wide of a margin as their loss to No. 20 Wisconsin, it is the first time that Rutgers has been shutout this season. Let’s take a look at the top performers for Rutgers from each phase from week 12.

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The Rutgers Scarlet Knights came into Week 12 needing one more victory to become bowl eligible with only two games left to play. First up, was a matchup against Penn State. Although their record might not match what their expectations were, the Nittany Lions still had one of the best defenses in the Big Ten.

For Rutgers, this was going to be an uphill battle from the jump. With head coach Greg Schiano’s ties to Penn State back in the early to mid 90’s and them sharing recruiting grounds, this game meant a little more to everyone involved. Tipico sportsbook had Penn State favored by 17.5 points coming in.

Rutgers dropped their week 12 contest in State College, getting shutout 28-0. Although it is difficult to learn things about the team in a shutout loss, every coach and player will tell you there is always something positive you can take from every game in the college football season.

Although this was not as wide of a margin as their loss to No. 20 Wisconsin, it is the first time that Rutgers has been shut out this season. Let’s take a look at the top performers for Rutgers from each phase from week 12.

Rutgers huge underdogs in game at Penn State

Rutgers is suddenly one win away from a bowl game with two games left to play. The Nittany Lions now sit at 6-4 overall this season and have fallen out of the top 25. Where should you put your money in this Big Ten matchup?

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Don’t look now, but Rutgers is suddenly one win away from a bowl game with two games left to play after winning two of their last three.

Their second-to-last game of the regular season doesn’t come easy, as they head to Happy Valley to take on the Penn State Nittany Lions. The Nittany Lions now sit at 6-4 overall this season and have fallen out of the top 25, but were ranked as high as No. 4 in the USA Today Sports AFCA Coaches Poll during the 2021 campaign.

Rutgers enters the contest as a 17.5 point underdog according to Tipico Sportsbook. The Nittany Lions may have underperformed this season, but Tipico feels they are still a three score favorite against the Scarlet Knights.

More importantly, the outcome of this game, especially if Rutgers can keep it close or pull off an upset, may (or may not) have a big impact on recruiting for the two programs. Both schools play in the Big Ten and their campuses are separated by only a few hours.

Penn State is 3-4 in conference play, but 1-3 at home. Rutgers is 2-5 in Big Ten games, but both of their wins have come on the road. A similar game plan of controlling the pace with the running game and limiting the turnovers could bode well for those bold enough to put money on Rutgers.

Rutgers has won two of the last three games outright and ATS. The Scarlet Knights are still 6-4 ATS for the season, despite their struggles against the Big Ten.

Penn State is also 6-4 ATS this season. Despite the success against the spread, the Nittany Lions have lost three of their last four games. This should be a great spot for them to right the ship, but the question is: can they cover a three-score spread?

The safer bet seems to be with the total — which is the norm for Rutgers who has seen four of their last five go under. Penn State has also gone under in eight of their 10 contests this season.

All Betting Lines are Courtesy of Tipico Sportsbook

  • Money line: Penn State -1100 (bet $1100 to win $100) Rutgers +650 (bet $100 to win $650)
  • Against the spread (ATS):  Penn State -17.5 (-107) Rutgers +17.5 (-115)
  • Over/Under (O/U): 45.5 (O: -112 U: -108)

Visit our free to play game lobby at Daily Ticket, Powered by Tipico Sportsbook

What’s next for former five-star LB recruit Curtis Jacobs?

Curtis Jacobs came in as one of the top recruits in the country in 2020, and now the sophomore could get his chance as a Nittany Lion.

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As the Nittany Lions enter the final phases of their spring practices, head coach James Franklin confirmed that Curtis Jacobs is getting reps with the first-team and is expected to get the start in 2021.

Jacobs was Penn State’s top recruit for the 2020 class and third-ranked outside linebacker in the country coming out of high school, according to 247 Sports.

During his weekly press conference on Wednesday, Franklin stated his decision with Jacobs is based on performance during spring practices. With Micah Parsons heading to the draft, and Jacobs’ lack of experience as a freshman, this a big move for the Nittany Lions to continue their success at the linebacker position.

Penn State’s Brandon Smith will continue to lead the linebacker core heading into this season as he and Jacobs are expected to play both outside linebacker roles.

The Nittany Lions should be excited to see Jacobs has excelled during his first full spring practices. At 6-foot-1 and 227 pounds, Franklin and company will want to use him as a pass coverage backer who can stick on running backs, wide receivers or tight ends. On the other hand, Smith can be that run stopping linebacker with his 6-foot-3, 240 pound frame.

Be on the lookout for Jacobs in this year’s Blue-White Game scheduled for April 17.

Which Penn State games are among the best Big Ten games in 2021?

Follow Nittany Lions Wire on Twitter and Like us on Facebook for continuing Penn State coverage and discussion.

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Penn State Football’s Widely Ridiculed ‘Every Super Bowl (Except Five)’ Post is the Tweet of the Year

Penn State tweeted out a ridiculous post tonight that got immediately panned for some hilarious fine print.

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Penn State Football, like the Spartans, had a tough 2020 season, so you can understand why they might want to find some positives to talk about. However, there are limits to how ridiculous you can be online before people roast you, and that’s what happened to Penn State on Twitter on Thursday night.

In honor of Sunday’s upcoming Super Bowl game, the Nittany Lions football Twitter account posted a tweet that, in big bold letters reads: ‘A PENN STATER HAS APPEARED IN EVERY SUPER BOWL‘.

However, the fine print below read: ‘Except for five since 1967.’

The internet immediately jumped on them for the ridiculous tweet, which you can check out if you click the tweet below:

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One of the top Big Ten LB’s decides not to opt back in

A top Big Ten LB will head to the NFL

Despite a number of top Big Ten studs deciding to opt back in to a 2020 season that will now begin in October, a Penn State star has gone the opposite route.

Nittany Lions LB Micah Parsons will not be opting back in to the 2020 season, and will prepare for the 2021 NFL draft. Parsons originally made the decision on Aug. 6, and has spent a significant amount of time away from the program. The time spent away over the past few months made this situation, “a little bit more complicated,” according to Penn State coach James Franklin.

Parsons had an incredible two-year run at Penn State, culminating in a 2019 year where he was the Big Ten linebacker of the year and recorded 109 tackles in 12 games.

He was also named Cotton Bowl MVP after Penn State’s win over Memphis. This is a massive loss for the Nittany Lions in a year where they look to contend for a Big Ten East title.