Since there is no Penn State pregame until late December, weekly commentary of Carroll H. Cook (’54 Pitt) ESPN chat will run as a standalone feature.

Luke (Memphis): Beano, can Penn State score enough to hang with Tennessee?

SportsNation Beano Cook: (3:17 PM ET ) Oh i think so. It’s going to be tough. But if you look at Penn St. defeats it came to ND, Wisconsin, Michigan, and OSU. They lost to some very good teams. And three of them were on the road.

Beano’s right, but what he overlooks is that Penn State struggled againist just about everyone who had won a game.

Elisha (chapel hill): Beano! What do you think is a better job, Miami or Rutgers? I understand it’s a cushier job, theres no other college team up there and Schiano is a hero… but if you want to win titles theres only 1 team with 5 rings in 25 years!

SportsNation Beano Cook: Well things have changed at Miami…the academics have gone up. but Greg Shiano wants the Penn St. job, and if he took the job, he wouldn’t have a shot. But the next coach at Penn St. is Bradley. But don’t be surprised if JoPA is there in the 22nd century.

“but Greg Shiano wants the Penn St. job, and if he took the job, he wouldn’t have a shot.” Huh?

I think Beano’s prediction about Paterno being there in the 22nd century is more likely than Tom Bradley getting the gig. That’s just the way it has worked out for the assistant coaches.

Travis (State College, PA): Do you think penn state has a shot at another BCS game next year (if not national championship)?

SportsNation Beano Cook: Yes. It depends on the QB, and they have to beat Michigan, and they don’t do that often. Since Penn St. entered the Big 10, it’s a different game. And I thought Penn St. would have won more Big 10 titles in their 14 seasons in the conference. Their combined record against Michigan Wisconsin and Ohio St. is terrible…but I think they will be very good next year. National Championship will be difficult, but not impossible.

I like to think PSU has a shot, but you know who it really depends on? The o-line. If they can’t block, nothing else matters.