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Linebackers Cabinda and Bell return to action for Lions

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - Linebackers Jason Cabinda and Brandon Bell, both of whom have missed much of the 2016 season with injuries, returned to the starting lineup Saturday night for Penn State's game against undefeated and second-ranked Ohio State.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - Linebackers Jason Cabinda and Brandon Bell, both of whom have missed much of the 2016 season with injuries, returned to the starting lineup Saturday night for Penn State's game against undefeated and second-ranked Ohio State.

Cabinda, the Nittany Lions' leader in tackles last season, played the entire season opener against Kent State but suffered an injury in practice before the team's second game and hasn't played since. Lions coach James Franklin hasn't commented on his injury, but Cabinda, a junior, has been seen with a cast on his right wrist and hand.

Bell, a senior who starred at Oakcrest High School, was taken out of Penn State's game against Pittsburgh on Sept. 10 with an apparent leg injury.

The two players made an impact from the start. Bell was in on 11 tackles in the first half, including a sack of Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett. Cabinda took part in six tackles in the opening quarter and had eight by halftime. His tackle for loss came on Mike Weber, the Buckeyes' leading rusher.

At his weekly teleconference Tuesday, Franklin said he wasn't sure how much Cabinda and Bell would play.

"They haven't practiced. They haven't played. They haven't been in games for a number of weeks," Franklin said. "To think that they are just going to be able to jump back in and be the type of players they were when they left, I don't know if that's realistic."

Bates' potential

Redshirt freshman Ryan Bates, who starred at Archbishop Wood, started his seventh consecutive game for Penn State, and his position coach said he could be a special player as he continues to grow in experience.

"To be honest with you, he isn't nearly the player right now that he has the potential to be once the experience catches up with the athletic ability," offensive line coach Matt Limegrover said.

Limegrover, who is in his first year with the Nittany Lions, said he first met the 6-foot-4, 305-pound Bates during winter conditioning and was excited "with a guy that was 305-308 pounds who could run the way he could and change direction."

But learning all the techniques that come with being an offensive lineman is difficult for anyone, he said, and he called Bates "still a work in progress."

"He is experiencing a lot of this stuff for the first time," he said. "I think that he's just that much further ahead because he's spent the extra fall camp and with the scout team. He was able to get that experience.

"Ryan has been able to see a lot more being a starter right from the beginning of the season. So he's processing a little bit quicker. But there have been some moments . . . where he knows something needs to be done so he overrides technique because he wants to get something done quickly and that gets him in trouble. But I'm very excited about him."

Line reshuffle

With the injury to offensive tackle Andrew Nelson against Maryland, the Nittany Lions moved left tackle Brendan Mahon over to Nelson's spot on the right side and started senior Paris Palmer at the other tackle.

Palmer, a junior college transfer, started 11 games last year at left tackle but did not figure into the starting five this season. He filled in after Nelson went down two weeks ago.

"I guess a nice luxury is that I have a guy like Paris Palmer, who has started some big football games here at Penn State," Limegrover said. "He feels real comfortable at left tackle."

King of the road

Ohio State entered the game with a 20-0 road record under coach Urban Meyer. The 20 consecutive wins are the most since Miami (Fla.) won that many in succession from 1984 through 1988.

The Buckeyes' last defeat on the road came in the final regular-season game of the 2011 season, when they dropped a 40-34 decision at archrival Michigan.

Meyer took over as head coach of the Buckeyes after the 2011 season. He entered Saturday night with a 56-4 record at Ohio State, 17-0 in the month of October.