Come this Saturday, Penn State will gun for its second milestone in as many weeks.
Nittany Lions tailback Evan Royster became Penn State’s all-time leading rusher against Michigan, and heading into the Northwestern game, the Lions are one win away from giving Joe Paterno his 400th win, a coaching milestone never achieved on the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) stage.
“It’s important to coach Paterno and all of us because it’s another game and could be Joe’s 400th,” wide receiver Graham Zug said. “But at the same time, he doesn’t want to think about that.”
Paterno has downplayed the milestone, but only two other college football coaches, John Gagliardi and Eddie Robinson, have surpassed 400 wins.
Gagliardi, currently the coach at Division III St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minn., has 476 wins after starting his career in 1949 at Carroll College of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), an alternative to the NCAA.
Robinson coached at Division I-AA Grambling State in Grambling, La. and ended his career in 1997 with 408 wins.
Paterno’s milestone would be as much an achievement in longevity as it is in wins. He is 83 years old and is in his 45th season as Penn State’s head coach. He has outlasted the previous two coaches on the FBS wins list, 44-year coach Bobby Bowden of Florida State, and Alabama’s Paul “Bear” Bryant, who coached for 38 years.
Adding to the mystique, Paterno, like Robinson, has accumulated all of his wins at one school, unlike Gagliardi, Bowden and Bryant.
“In our eyes, it’s a whole ’nother step,” Zug said. “It shows how much of a legend he is and how much of a great coach he is, so we want to get that for him.”
Day to remember
Offense: Quarterback Matt McGloin and tailback Evan Royster
Royster not only broke Curt Warner’s rushing record, but he surpassed it with a bang. He rushed for 150 yards with two touchdowns and achieved the milestone on a 20-yard first quarter run.
McGloin, a former walk-on in his first collegiate start, threw for 250 yards and a touchdown and efficiently ran the offense with a 60-percent completion rate.
Defense: Linebacker Mike Mauti.
The Penn State defense couldn’t stop Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson, who accumulated 381 yards of total offense, but Mauti stood out on defense with 10 tackles, which led the Lions.
Day to forget
Offense: Tailback Stephfon Green
Green didn’t have any carries in the win Saturday. Royster received a season-high 29 carries, and freshman tailback Silas Redd had 24 yards on six carries as the second stringer.
Green hasn’t gotten more than three carries in each of the last four games. The redshirt junior was limited to kickoff duties against Michigan. He returned two for 50 yards.
Defense: Cornerback Stephon Morris
Like Green, Morris saw no production. Chaz Powell replaced him at cornerback after Morris’ sub-par performance last week at Minnesota.
Morris started every game at cornerback before Michigan but didn’t play a down Saturday. Defensive coordinator Tom Bradley said there will be weekly competition for the starting spot.
Did you notice?
Penn State had two gutsy fourth-down calls.
On Royster’s 4th-and-1 conversion in the second quarter, redshirt freshman Nate Cadogan, who is listed at 297 pounds, substituted in as an extra tight end with Kevin Haplea.
Joe Paterno decided to fake the field goal and direct snap the ball to kicker Collin Wagner, who ran for seven yards and a first down on 4th-and-4 during Penn State’s last drive.
Extra Point
At the end of Paterno’s post-game press conference — when asked if there were any more questions — the coach started getting up, happy the late-night game was over.
“Ah good, I’m going home and going to bed,” said Paterno, causing laughs from reporters.
Quotable
McGloin when talking about teammates calling him Brett Favre because he has similarities in playing style with the NFL quarterback: “I don’t send any pictures or anything like that, so I’m not entirely like him.”