Long time Penn State head coach Joe Paterno thought last years Nittany Lions college football team wasn’t tough enough so he got the notion to run a tough August camp to get his team ready for the grind of the 2011 Big Ten college football season. Paterno didn’t realize he would have to show his team some toughness of his own after getting blindsided and knocked to the ground by one of his players last week. The collision put Paterno in the hospital for a short stay but no serious injuries ensued. While suffering some pain the injury won't effect 2011 College Football Predictions on the Nittany Lions, Paterno plans to be on the sidelines for Penn State’s season opener against Indiana State Sept. 3.
Penn State is picked third in the Leaders Division behind Wisconsin and Ohio State and has recently landed at No. 25 in the preseason USA-Today Coaches Poll. The Nittany Lions return a strong nucleus of players from 2010 but will be looking to fill shoes at key positions; especially quarterback.
Speculation runs rampant when a starting quarterback isn’t named and with the season only two weeks away, a starter still isn’t named. Paterno has indicated he will choose a starter prior to the first game. The coach likes what he sees out of quarterbacks Rob Bolden and Matt McGloin and feels he could go with either one and be in good shape. A bigger concern for Paterno is in the offensive line, a unit he openly questions its toughness.
The schedule maker was not kind to Penn State, dotting its schedule with four top-25 match-ups; an early Sept. 10 home game with No. 2 Alabama and a home date with No. 11 Nebraska (Nov. 12); then to close out the regular season with back-to-back trips to play No. 16 Ohio State and No. 10 Wisconsin. The rest of the schedule looks winnable with the only other road trips to Indiana and Northwestern while getting Iowa, Purdue and Illinois at home. If the Nittany Lions can win one of those three top-25 match-ups, they have potential to put together a 9-3 season. However, Penn State will not win Leaders Division or the Big Ten.
Penn State Nittany Lions 2011 College Football Predictions – BCS Odds 2012:
Regular Season Wins: Over 7.5 Games (-150), Under 7.5 (+130)
Big Ten Leaders Division 2011 – Odds to Win +200
2011 Big Ten Championship Game – Odds to Win +700
2012 BCS National Championship – Odds to Win +3000
