X-Factors: Minnesota

And so here we are at the penultimate game of the regular season, with a Top-five ranked Penn State team taking on Minnesota. The first couple of iterations of this movie did not end well for the young men in Blue and White, but if this edition is going to have a happier ending, here are some X-factors to keep in mind.

Start Fast (Again)

Penn State has done a solid job of starting fast in their past couple of games against Purdue and Washington, getting up by two-to-three scores in the first half and putting those teams in holes that ended up being insurmountable for them to climb out of. If they want to avoid being caught in a tight game in the fourth quarter against Minnesota, it is…