On Saturday afternoon, the Penn State Nittany Lions and the Iowa Hawkeyes engaged in a contest of American football at Kinnick Stadium in a battle of Big Ten unbeatens. The Nittany Lions fell in Iowa City, 23-20. I have several thoughts, which are set forth randomly below.
1. Thirteen years ago, an unbeaten Penn State team ranked third in the country traveled west to face another Big Ten rival ranked in the top-10. Despite Penn State’s uncharacteristically impressive offensive performance in an offense run by redshirt junior Daryll Clark, the game was widely expected to be a defensive struggle.