Hindsight 2022: Penn State Offense vs. Purdue
Though James Franklin’s well-worn weekly 1-0 objective was met, reviews of Mike Yurcich’s Year 2 debut vary from ‘meh’ to ‘Man, not this again.’
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If a picture is worth 1,000 words, then surely embedding the viral gif of Purdue safety Chris Jefferson’s Puke-6 regurgitation celebration – a true Icky Shuffle – into this blog post should thoroughly summarize Penn State’s 2022 opening act on offense.
But we’re not going to do that. Shocking, we know.
Given the sophomoric DNA of this media enterprise, you have every reason to drop your jaw and raise your eyebrow(s) right now. Leading off the third season of ‘Hindsight’ with a man vomiting on live television is the content equivalent of a hanging slider, right over the plate, seconds after the clubhouse attendant banged on a trash can to let us know what’s coming…and yet, we’re taking the figurative pitch, 1. Because it’s super gross, repulsive, humiliating, offensive, distasteful, crude, objectionable, and, according to the fable of David Hogan from the movie Stand By Me, a dangerous contagious projectile, and 2. …
…Because every time we tried to embed the gif, WordPress crashed.
Stupid technology.
Formations
Last season, Mike Yurcich – an X’s and O’s old soul – blew the cobwebs off Walter Camp’s T Formation, an innovative alignment that was all the rage…back in the 19th century.
According to our charting, Yurcich wheeled out this strategic antique 4 times last year: 4th down vs. Villanova (successful), 4th and Goal vs. Indiana (failed), 2nd and Goal vs. Ohio State (successful), and 4th and Goal vs. Michigan (successful).
Well, it’s back! And, rather remarkably, it’s more primitive than ever!
As we documented in our off-season deep dive into Yurcich’s use of the T, in 2021 Clifford would line up, check to the sideline, and then have Yurcich determine the direction of the off-tackle run out of the T depending on the strength (or weakness) of the defense.
Against Purdue, it appears Clifford surveys the defense and calls the play himself. 86-Brenton Strange transforms into a human cowcatcher and mushes his poor quarterback through the sweaty mess for six. Note: In last year’s T Formation looks, Yurcich featured 5 OL and 3 TE – a package we called TRIDENT. Against Purdue, Yurcich used 6 OL and 2 TE in the T – a possible adjustment from 2021, or a temporary adaptation since Theo Johnson was in civvies on the sideline.
But enough about the T. Let’s move on to something new…which is also old.
Sorry for triggering your PSU PTSD, but remember when Illinois coach/Trophy husband Bret Bielema emptied every thick-ankled lineman he had onto the field and ran it down Penn State’s ill-prepared throats?
(shudders)
Apparently, if you can’t beat them in 9 overtimes, join them!
Yurcich rolled out this less beefy version of Bielema Ball on 3rd and 1 late in the 1st quarter. Count with me…that’s 6 OL with 72-Bryce Effner being the extra, 2 TE, and 1 fish out of water – 1-KeAndre Lambert-Smith anchoring inline on the boundary and looking incredibly uncomfortable. For those scoring at home, this fat guy formation netted 3 yards on the ground.
Substitutions
Bit of a shocker to see raw but roadrunner-quick true freshman WR 18-Omari Evans make his collegiate debut Thursday night. Bit of a bigger shocker that Mike Yurcich and James Franklin felt comfortable enough to trust Evans on the field for the final two plays from scrimmage –the ultimate nail-biting, teeth-chattering high-leverage situation where normally experience trumps electric speed. Evans wasn’t targeted, but still.
During his weekly press conference prior to the Big Ten road opener, Franklin told reporters, “There’s probably five (WRs) I would feel comfortable putting out there with maybe a sixth guy being right on the edge.” Shame on us for assuming, but we figured Franklin’s Five consisted of 3-Parker Washington, 5-Mitchell Tinsley, 1-KeAndre Lambert-Smith, 80-Malick Meiga, and 6-Harrison Wallace with either 82-Liam Clifford or 19-Jaden Dottin being that sixth, fringe, Break-In-Case-of-Emergency guy. Not the case. As expected, the starters hogged the majority of snaps. But 80-Meiga didn’t sniff the field except on special teams. Same goes for 82-Clifford and 19-Dottin.
Furthermore, color us surprise to learn that unseen Man of Mystery 77-Sal Wormley – not ultra-hyped sophomore 58-Landon Tengwall — was the (mostly) untouchable guard in Penn State’s 3-man rotation. Wormley had his cleats in the dirt for 75 of the Nittany Lions’ 78 total snaps. Tengwall and Cornell transfer 64-Hunter Nourzad basically spilt reps 50-50 at left guard.
Lost in the jubilant aftermath of Thursday’s escape was the fact that backup tackle 72-Bryce Effner replaced starter 79-Caedan Wallace before the 4th quarter. Yep, it’s true. Effner tapped-in at right tackle for Wallace on Penn State’s final drive of the first half – the lighting-in-a-bottle 30-second scoring march capped by 86-Brenton Strange’s Wreck-it-Ralph romp across the goalline. Makes us wonder…Was Wallace actually benched, or is Effner some sort of ‘Pass Protection Specialist’ – like a Pinch Runner in baseball, or a Hockey Goon – that will see situational snaps throughout the season when run plays are off the table?
Oh, and for those you who have been trapped in isolation or stuck in one of those off-the-grid communes since Thursday, anointed savior and inevitable three-time Heisman winner 15-Drew Allar grabbed the keys from a dehydrated 14-Sean Clifford for 6 snaps on Penn State’s initial possession of the second half.
Finally, Penn State’s trio of running backs – incumbent starter 24-Keyvone Lee, and soon-to-be-starters 13-Kaytron Allen and 10-Nick Singleton – played nice and took turns rotating in the game one possession at a time. And while their individual stats were nearly identical – Lee: 9 carries for 30 yards; Singleton: 10 for 31 yards; Allen: 8 carries for 31 yards – the two decorated true freshmen teased us with brilliant (but brief) flashes of their full potential.
Decisive. Downhill. Confident in their decision, even if their vision is a tad narrow at this stage of their development. Lot to like.
But perhaps the best bit of good news received from Allen and Singleton’s college football christening was how each guy performed when the ball wasn’t in their hands. Through one week, anyway, both Singleton and Allen proved to be capable pass protectors who don’t need to be ushered off the field on 3rd and longs. Given that Allen starred in a high school offense that mirrors many modern college attacks, he was fairly proven pass blocker prior to enrolling at Penn State. Not the case with Singleton…although you’d never know it judging from his pass pro reps from Thursday.
LB blitz with a lengthy runway. Singleton steps up to greet the rusher, absorbs the blow, maintains his balance, and calmly ushers 225-pound Auburn transfer OC Brothers out of Clifford’s throwing window. Pretty sure Singleton’s aptitude to handle this blitz pickup caught Clifford off guard, because his caffeinated feet suggest he’s anticipating that his true freshman protector is about to get blown up.
Run/Pass Blocking
This is gonna sound crazy. IDK, man, perhaps Stockholm Syndrome has fully enveloped my brain and empathy pours from the heart like a faucet for a Penn State run game that has burdened us all with false hope and bitter disappoint since…well, since…damn, how long has it been?
But we’re close. We’re oh so close.
Unfortunately, objective statistics don’t substantiate our subjective optimism. Not only did Penn State not end its dubious streak of failing to produce an 100-yard individual rusher in a game, the Lions couldn’t even crack the century mark as a team. 32 carries for 98 yards. That’s 3.1 yards per carry. That’s not good vs. anybody. And that’s especially not good against a defense that lost its best player from a 2021 squad that ranked 13th in the 14-team Big Ten in Rush Defense.
But a well-executed block here, and a broken tackle there, and we’re having a different conversation, right? Right?!?!
Like here, for example:
Jet sweep to PW3. Love this play. Love creative, safe ways to get the ball in our best playmakers’ hands. The DE goes unblocked on purpose. He’s got no shot at stopping this. 74-Olu Fashanu is supposed to climb to the MIKE – a ‘cool if you can do it’ but not totally necessary task. 86-Brenton Strange has Purdue’s LB/S hybrid, what Jeff Brohm calls the STUD position. This block, unlike Fashanu’s assignment, IS vital. It’s hard to see, but Strange takes a small false step at the snap, which causes him to be a hair shy of executing this block and getting his helmet playside on the STUD. This tardiness negates 5-Tinsley’s awesome block on the corner and shrinks a 10-15-yard gain to 2.
Another example. Close. Oh so close:
RPO. Clifford correctly reads man coverage, thus eliminating the flip to Strange from the equation. Clifford reads the unblocked DE while 5 OL handle 4 defenders – advantage Penn State. The DE doesn’t crash, so Clifford wisely hands off to 24-Keyvone Lee. Nice double team by 79-Wallace and 77-Wormley. Blitzing safety 10-Cam Allen runs himself out of the play while 64-Nourzad maaaaaybe gets away with a hold on Purdue DL 99-Jack Sullivan. That leaves 70-Juice Scruggs one-on-one against a 255-pound linebacker.
And he loses…almost like he didn’t anticipate blocking someone that soon. The linebacker stands Scruggs up, disengages from the big man and catches Lee by the heel before he can bolt to the second level.
| PSU Pass Pro 2022 | Clean Pocket | Disturbed Pocket | % Clean Pocket |
| Purdue | 41 | 8 | 83.7% |
Stellar job overall of giving Clifford time to process in the pocket. Several instances in which Clifford appeared under duress were because of his own jitters and uneasiness. There were a few breakdowns. The leakiest spot on the line belonged to 79-Wallace. As we mentioned in the substitutions section, he was eventually replaced.
Quarterback Play
To borrow a line from animated 1990s philosopher MC Scat Kat, Penn State QB Sean Clifford took “two steps forward” and “two steps back” in his 4th season opener as a starter – a textbook Jekyll and Hyde performance that somehow garnered B1G Co-Offensive Player of the Week honors????
Must’ve been a slow week.
| Clifford vs. Purdue | Accurate | Inaccurate | WILD/Off-Target |
| Easy Throw | 13 | 2 | 0 |
| Moderate Throw | 7 | 6 | 4 |
| Difficult Throw | 2 | 1 | 2 |
*Does not include 5 Throwaways/Batted Balls. Does include plays negated by penalty.
First, Clifford’s two steps forward:
In our initial FTB Film Study of the preseason, we had Coach Codutti measure the steeper-than-expected learning curve Clifford traversed while piloting Mike Yurcich’s RPO packages in Year 1. For those who didn’t get a chance to view the video, the overarching theme was Clifford’s limited command of the system lead to wrong reads and hesitancy, which, in turn, resulted in multiple missed big-play opportunities.
On Thursday, we saw noticeable growth in this area.
So this RPO concept – and the defense’s response to it – is nearly identical to the situation presented to Clifford in the first clip of our Film Study. However, the choices Clifford makes in the two similar plays is totally different – that one wrong, this one right.
Orbit motion from the boundary to the field. Purdue is playing zone, so no defender follows 3-Parker Washington. Same thing in our film study clip – Jahan Dotson goes in orbit motion from the boundary to the field vs. Iowa. No one follows him, either.
Purdue’s linebackers fail to bump over toward the motion and the safeties don’t rotate down to acknowledge the motion. Neither did Iowa’s. Dotson had 18-20 yards separating him and the nearest unblocked defender. Washington might have even more here.
Against Iowa, Clifford inexplicably handed the ball to 28-Devyn Ford who was DOA as he entered a box loaded with 7 defenders and only 5 blockers. Wrong read.
11 months later against Purdue, Clifford passed on sending 13-Allen into an outnumbered box and instead put his premier playmaker in a situation to score (he was THAT wide open). Don’t be distracted by the drop. Clifford pushed the right button here.
Now, Clifford’s two steps back…
Backside switch routes, born out of Mouse Davis’ then-innovative Run and Shoot system from the 1970s, have been a fixture in Mike Yurcich’s vertical passing attack at every stop of his coaching career, including Penn State. I intended to go in-depth on the backside switch last spring, but I have a sick rooftop pool and waning enthusiasm to write when it’s nice out, so I never got to it. My bad.
Backside switch routes are SECONDARY reads, not PRIMARY reads for the quarterback. In essence, they are “attachment” routes that are only considered if the quarterback doesn’t like his primary playside routes.
Here is an example of a successful switch route concept from 2021 vs. Wisconsin:
KLS and Parker are the backside switch receivers. Once they “switch” the receivers are now running vertical read routes inside an imaginary “tube.” Washington’s “tube” ranges from the sidelines to the numbers. KLS’ “tube” ranges from the numbers to the hash marks.
Got all this? Good.
Once inside the tube, the receiver and QB must determine whether the tube is “capped” – meaning there’s a third-level defender at the top of the tube – or “uncapped” – meaning there’s nobody between you and the end zone. If your tube is capped, like Washington’s here, the receiver breaks off the route and stops. If your tube is uncapped, like KLS’, you keep stretching vertically.
Scroll back up and watch the Wisconsin play again…Clifford doesn’t like his primary read (either Dotson or Strange, can’t tell) so he flips his head backside to his secondary read and spots KLS streaking uncapped. Clifford is a touch slow in his progression, causing KLS to wait for the ball, but it’s still a big play.
Here’s Penn State running a backside switch route attachment vs. Purdue:
Ugh, two steps back, indeed.
Clifford spits on his primary read and progresses to the backside switches. Protection is IMMACULATE. No rush. No hurry. Plenty of time for Clifford to make the right read and the right throw. Except he doesn’t.
Instead of throwing to Tinsley, who has breezed past Purdue cornerback 23-Cory Trice for what would have been a guaranteed touchdown, Clifford tosses up a deep ball to a tight end in a capped tube. Sick thing is, the throw is perfect…but there’s just no chance for this play to be completed.
6th-year seniors shouldn’t mess this up. 4th-year starters shouldn’t mess this up. QBs in the 2nd year of a system shouldn’t keep committing the same flubs that popped up in Year 1 of Yurcich, Year 1 of Ciarrocca, and Year 1 of Rahne. Slow Progressions. Poor Pocket Presence. Lack of Accuracy. Wrong Reads. Clifford remains consistently inconsistent.
Two steps forward…
Two steps back…
Moving on…
For the rapidly multiplying swarm of Allar Allies out there, here’s your candy:
Not sure what to say about Allar’s brief cameo that hasn’t already been said by but the growing number of PSU podcasts out there. He did OK, ya know?
What’s that? One more? Fine. Don’t tell your mother.
| Allar vs. Purdue | Accurate | Inaccurate | WILD/Off-Target |
| Easy Throw | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Moderate Throw | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Difficult Throw | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Pass Catchers
As advertised, Western Kentucky stat gobbler 5-Mitchell Tinsley was a YAC king in his Penn State debut, continuing right where he left off last season when he forced an astonishing 20 missed tackles according to PFF. For context, that’s 4 more missed tackles than any PSU receiver registered in a single season during the James Franklin era.
Textbook stiff-arm. Full extension. Hand on the crown of the helmet. Face in the dirt. 20 additional yards and a quick scoot out of bounds to save some clock. A big 1 v. 1 win in space when it was needed most.
| Week 1: Purdue | Routine | Tough/Contested | Incredible |
| 5-Tinsley | 5/5 | 2/2 | 0/1 |
| 1-KLS | 3/5 | 1/3 | 0/1 |
| 3-Washington | 2/3 | ||
| 44-Warren | 2/2 | 1/2 | 0/1 |
| 86-Strange | 2/2 | 0/1 | |
| 6-Wallace | 0/2 | ||
| 28-Ford | 1/1 | ||
| 24-Lee | 2/2 | ||
| 13-Allen | 1/1 |
Judging from the table above, 1-KLS had a forgettable opener with a remarkable, unforgettable catch and run that, in a vacuum, might be one of the most impressive plays in the history of Penn State football. Hyperbolic? Ehh, maybe. But that’s why we purposely chose the word “impressive” not “important.”
This is pure, uncut athleticism:
Supreme contact balance here. Even better, KLS accelerates from 0 to 60 post-hit in the blink of an eye, separating from Purdue defenders over the course of a mere 20 yards.
Impressive.
To wrap things up, Parker Washington received a rude introduction to life outside the slot early in this game. Accustomed to free releases against nickel backs, safeties and linebackers last season, Washington will have to adjust to physical press-man coverage if he’s gonna to be more than just a slot receiver this season.
Washington gets absolutely violated here, a mugging deserving of a flag and then some, but the ref doesn’t reach for his pocket. This will happen, though, and Washington must be able to counter it.
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