Crunchy Numbers
Penn State can't possibly lose to Michigan this year, can it?
I realize I've been neglecting this thing lately, but the Phillies' romp through the playoffs has been taking up a lot of my time. I'll be able to get back to focusing on college sports over the next couple of weeks, including live coverage of Big East Men's Basketball Media Day at Madison Square Garden a week from tomorrow.
I'll also be covering the Penn football team's next two games, at home against Columbia on Saturday and at Yale on Oct. 25. Hopefully I'll be able to open a chat room here on the blog during both contests and we can talk about whatever's on your mind sports-wise.
Looking back at this past weekend, I'm having a hard time deciding which was more unbelievable: Penn State's blowout win at Wisconsin or Delaware giving up 17 points in the final 12 minutes at home to Maine.
It probably has to be the Nittany Lions' win, in part because of the score and in part because of how badly Wisconsin needed to stay in the Big Ten title race.
Yet I can't help thinking that even though Delaware trailed at halftime, playing a fourth quarter like that at home against an unranked opponent is just stunning.
Maybe it was the whole game, though. The Blue Hens totaled only 14 rushing yards and committed five turnovers. And as the
's Kevin Tresolini
» READ MORE: wrote Sunday
, all of those turnovers "either prevented Delaware from possibly scoring, put Maine in position to score or led directly to Black Bear points."
As for this week, Penn State is once again in the national spotlight. It's been 12 years since the Nittany Lions last beat Michigan, and this year has to be the best chance in a long time to end that streak.
My Philly.com colleague Sheil Kapadia (of
» READ MORE: Moving the Chains
fame) is a Penn State alum, and while most of his focus is on the NFL he pays close attention to his alma mater.
"I'm more confident than I've been in a decade, but I'm certainly not marking it down as a 'W,' " he told me.
But if the Wolverines can't beat Toledo at home, how on earth can they win in Beaver Stadium?
We'll find out Saturday at 4:30 p.m.
And now for the numbers...
Road win vs. No. 29/44 Wisconsin, 48-7
10/18 vs. No. 82 Michigan, 4:30 p.m., ESPN
Off
10/18 at No. 189 Rhode Island, 12:00 p.m.
Road loss vs. No. 37/42 Cincinnati, 13-10
10/18 vs. No. 35 Connecticut, 12:00 p.m., ESPNU
Road loss vs. No. 81/75 Central Michigan, 24-14
This week: Off
(The Owls' next game is Tuesday, Oct. 21, at the Linc against Ohio, so it falls within next week's post.)
Home loss vs. No. 160/142 Maine, 27-10
10/18 vs. No. 116 William & Mary, 12:00 p.m.
Road win vs. No. 216/220 Columbia, 13-3
10/18 at No. 122 Liberty, 3:30 p.m.
Road win vs. No. 222/222 Georgetown, 27-7
10/18 vs. No. 220 Columbia, 1:00 p.m.
Home win vs. No. 184/194 Fordham, 45-24
10/18 at No. 128 Harvard, 12:30 p.m.
Road win vs. No. 185/196 Bethune-Cookman, 26-20
10/18 vs. No. 234 North Carolina A&T, 1:00 p.m.
On to the Top 10 chart, which continues to be tossed around like scrambled eggs in a frying pan. Penn State, Alabama and Texas have been the biggest beneficiaries so far, and they all have
» READ MORE: home games this week
. Do you think any of them will be upset on Saturday?