Penn State's punt team could be pivotal vs. Illinois

STATE COLLEGE - In its last two road games, Penn State's punt-team unit played a significant role.

Against Michigan at the Big House on Oct. 11, it was woeful, allowing the lowly Wolverines to cash in on easy points.

But at Indiana, on Nov. 8, the Nittany Lions' "wefense," as head coach James Franklin calls it, was a subtle key to victory as it gave Penn State a field-position advantage.

Franklin will be looking for the latter to continue when his Lions (6-4, 2-4 Big Ten) travel to Illinois (4-6, 1-5 Big Ten) tomorrow at noon.

"[The punters] had shown it in practice, and they had shown it consistently. It wasn't happening consistently in the games," Franklin said. "So we're going to keep building on that."

Through the first 7 weeks, Penn State ranked as bad as 115th nationally in net punt average, and it was costly.

The Lions were favored to beat Michigan a month ago. But locked in a tied game in the fourth quarter, then-starting punter Chris Gulla, after struggling all game, hit a 29-yard flop that gave the Wolverines the ball on Penn State's 49-yard line. It was good enough field position for Michigan to eke out a go-ahead field goal.

The punt unit also struggled mightily the following game against Ohio State, but surprisingly rebounded 2 weeks later in Bloomington, Ind.

True freshman Daniel Pasquariello took over for Gulla and was an improvement, consistently pinning the Hoosiers within their own 20.

Pasquariello was helped by his punt coverage. In previous weeks, the Lions took an approach of directional punting. Now, Pasquariello is told just to boot the ball as deep as he can and have the gunners cover.

"We haven't had the type of hang time or distance that we'd love, but it's been much better," Franklin said. "We'll continue to do that."

It likely will prove to be important against the Illini, which ranks 11th nationally in net punting average, and can make things happen fielding punts, averaging a little over 9 yards per return.

Franklin also said his team will expect the Illini to pull out all the stops, trying everything from onside kicks to fake punts.

"They do a wide range of things trying to cause deception," Franklin said.

In the meantime, Pasquariello, a native of Australia, is still learning on the fly. From the get-go, special-teams coordinator Charles Huff knew the Aussie would be a project. Huff realized Pasquariello "had a cannon for a leg" on the first day, but the punter also didn't know where all his football pads were supposed to go that day.

And having played only his 10th American football game, Pasquariello is still adjusting.

"It's kind of like baking a cake," Huff said. "You don't open the box and just eat the cake. You have to put some ingredients in . . . We're doing that with him, and he still has a long way to go in terms of his maturation and development."

Pasquariello's coaches are hoping that evolution continues tomorrow.

Penn State (6-4, 2-4 Big Ten) vs. Illinois (4-6, 1-5)

When: Noon

Where: Champaign, Ill.

TV: ESPN2

Radio: WNTP (990 AM), ESPN (93.7 FM)

Three things to watch

1. With an encouraging performance on the ground against Temple, what will Penn State's offense look like against the Illini? Probably more of the same. But keep an eye out for a positive game from quarterback Christian Hackenberg. After a breakout freshman campaign, the gunslinger has statistically regressed this season; he's had five multi-interception games to just one multi-touchdown game. Look for him to utilize the play-action pass and get at least one touchdown pass against the Illini.

2. Penn State's No. 1 nationally ranked rush defense shouldn't have much trouble this weekend: Illinois is 117th nationally in rushing yards per game. That considered, the Illini likely will need to win via the arm of quarterback Wes Lunt. Hurt for nearly half the season, Lunt returned to action last week. The former Oklahoma State transfer has 1,671 yards and a 14-to-3 touchdown-to-interception ratio this season.

3. Now that the Lions are bowl-eligible, it's all about improving their stock. A win against Illinois would do the trick. No, it wouldn't be a signature win, but getting to seven wins would make them more appealing to a wider variety of bowls.