Three Keys for Penn State against Iowa

Friday, 19 October 2012 16:38

Written by Mark Dent

1. Score early - Penn State has done this all season, outscoring opponents 52-0 in the first quarter, but it will be particularly important coming off the bye week. Some good defensive stops and a major scoring drive would help erase any hangover there might be from not having played last week. Also, as B.O.B. said in his Tuesday press conference, Iowa has some momentum after its thrilling win against Michigan State last week, and stopping them early would help Penn State.

2. Win the turnover battle - This is key for every game but will especially matter on Saturday. Iowa has turned the ball over just four times this year. Penn State has turned it over five. Both of these teams clearly take care of the ball. Whoever gets the edge in this category could run away with the game.

3. Forget the crowd - Penn State has not won at Iowa since 1999. As players said this week, you can hear everything the fans say, considering they are about five feet behind the bench. This is Penn State's first real road test. Virginia had a good atmosphere for Virginia, but that crowd was nowhere near hostile. The stadium at Illinois was half-empty. Iowa is going to provide a real test, and we'll see if Penn State is equipped to handled a true road game.

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