1. What must Penn State do or not do to come out of Madison victorious?
Penn State needs to attack the Badgers with aggressive game plan and not fall into the typical road game trap that they set for themselves — play close to the vest on offense and hope the defense can win it. Attack, attack, attack. Daryl Clark needs to be sharp and not afraid to take off when the wideouts are not open.
2. The Badgers are really down after dropping out of the rankings and losing their grip on a Big Ten title and a BCS Bowl. There is concern that the Badgers are emotionally spent (Journal-Sentinel) and could collapse.
Does Wisconsin bounce back and beat Penn State or do they collapse? Is there reason for panic in Madison?
That is a tough call since Michigan and Ohio State back-to-back is a tall order for anyone. If they play poorly on Saturday, they should panic. I don’t think they have to win to avoid panicking, but they can’t find a way to lose a winnable game.
3. The Big Ten has a good crop of running backs this year including Wisconsin true freshman John Clay who is averaging 6.7 yards per carry. How much playing time does Clay see this week compared to P.J. Hill? How does our defense fare against them?
Hill will be the featured back, but Clay should get at least ten touches. I think Wisconsin will run the ball well since I am still not sold on Josh Hull, 11 solo tackles last week notwithstanding.
4. Between the third and fourth quarters the Wisconsin students do the “jump around”, which shakes the stadium. How do you think the loud, jumping, night atmosphere will affect Penn State?
It will not help, but I do not expect Penn State to be rattled by all the noise like Ohio State was in 2005. Everybody has played in these envirornments, so they will just have to deal with it.
Lightning Round
Predict the play calling. Do Galen and JayPa open up the offense or do they get conservative on the road?
I think having a weaker than normal defense means Joe Paterno will reluctantly let Jay Paterno and Galen Hall be aggressive.
What are the odds Wisconsin loses two consecutive games at home?
50-50, I guess
Does the Wisconsin band play this week?
Probably
How many quarters does JoePa spend in the coaches box?
Well, if the band plays, I’ll say five.
The rest of the roundtable
There is No Name on My Jersey
Tangled Up in
White and Blue
Happy Hour Valley
Black Shoe Diaries
The Nittany Line
We Want the Lion
Zombie Nation
