Sept. 30, 2016
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State Football returns home from the road, set to spend nearly the entire month of October in Beaver Stadium. The Nittany Lions kick off a string of three-straight home games hosting Minnesota Saturday.
Penn State (2-2, 0-1 East) enters the matchup looking to earn its first conference win of the season, having lost its opener on the road at No. 4/5 Michigan last week. Minnesota (3-0, 0-0 West) travels to Happy Valley for its first Big Ten outing, after closing out a three-game homestand with a 31-24 win against Colorado State to wrap up its non-conference schedule.
Possession of the Governor's Victory Bell is on the line as the Nittany Lions and the Golden Gophers are set to meet for the first time since 2013, when Minnesota took the trophy home for the first time in eight years in Minneapolis. Penn State and Minnesota will square off at home in Beaver Stadium for the first time 2009.
"We're excited about being back at home," Penn State head coach James Franklin said. "I think there is a distinct advantage obviously all over the country in being at home compared to being on the road. We're excited about being back in Beaver Stadium in front of our fans and friends and family, and a great opportunity to go out and play a good football team and have an opportunity to be 1-0 this week, which is our goal and our focus."
Keying in on improving attention to detail and consistency all week, the Nittany Lions will look to improve upon offensive execution. Last week, Penn State saw running back Saquon Barkley lead the way with 136 yards of total offense, including 77 receiving yards. Averaging 120 all-purpose yards per game, Barkley currently ranks fifth in the Big Ten in the category.
Barkley and the rest of the Nittany Lion offense will matchup against a Minnesota defensive line that's limiting its opponents to less than 120 yards on the ground per game, while also allowing just two rushing touchdowns on the year.
Offensively, the Golden Gophers are averaging just under 40 points per game, having totaled 119 points in the first three games of the season for the first time since putting up 143 points in 2005. Guided by an experienced quarterback in Mitch Leidner, Minnesota has relied heavily on its run game, which has accounted for 11 of 15 total touchdowns on the year.
Led by head coach Tracy Claeys, Minnesota returns 13 seniors-eligible players on its roster, which is just one shy of Penn State's 12 senior members on the team.
"It will be a great challenge," Franklin said. "I think both teams are similar team in terms of youth and experience. They have returning starters, but they're a young football. We're still a little bit younger, but they're young as well."
Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. on the Big Ten Network with Brandon Gaudin (play-by-play) and Chuck Long (analyst) on the call.
Welcome to our week five gameday preview - Penn State vs. Minnesota.
FULL STORY HERE.