Penn St is kinda weird. 2015 Sparty, my favorite whipping boy, was clearly overrated. It leapt off the page. It leapt off the screen. Penn St doesn't. Good year to date numbers, especially for a 2 loss team. Close losses. Lopsided wins. Impressive on tape.
They're not overrated, at least not like I'd describe it, but they also don't really fit the narrative. Innovative offense, good QB, Heisman candidate at RB. That's what we're told. But look at the rushing numbers. Two of these are losses against teams that have defended the run well, but three are comfortable wins where you'd assume they would have better rushing numbers.
Rutgers: 90 yds, 31 carries (2.9)
Mich St: 65 yds, 21 carries (3.1)
OSU: 91 yds, 35 carries, (2.6)
NW: 95 yds, 38 carries, (2.5)
Indiana: 39 yds, 31 carries, (1.1)
But we know they can run it well. The non-conference numbers were all good, as were the two I didn't list, Iowa and Michigan. Not only is there a very stark variance between the top half and bottom half rushing numbers, but it doesn't really align with strength of opponent. It's just weird.