The Ohio State Buckeyes might want to brace for a Penn State Nittany Lions program that was deemed deserving of college football's preseason No. 2 ranking as opposed to the horror show that's lost four in a row since Big Ten play began.
The Columbus Dispatch's Rob Oller believes Penn State is the most talented team on OSU's schedule, even with James Franklin's departure, outside of the Buckeyes' Week 1 matchup, the Texas Longhorns.
Oller gave Ohio State defensive coordinator and Broyles Award frontrunner Matt Patricia and offensive coordinator Brian Hartline, a simple enough game plan to seal a win in Week 10: dominate the trenches like the Texas game and put pressure on Nittany Lions quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer.
"I have to believe Penn State still has more talent than any OSU opponent not named Texas. If so, the Nittany Lions could sneak up on the Buckeyes and put a scare into them. How to avoid? Dominate the lines of scrimmage, which means getting the running game up to speed and putting pressure on quarterback and Olentangy product Ethan Grunkemeyer," Oller wrote.
The Columbus Dispatch snubs TTUN with comment on Penn State, Texas
Funnily enough, TTUN wasn't included in Oller's top two most daunting opponents list for Ohio State this season. Evidently, freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood and Alabama Crimson Tide transfer running back Justice Haynes don't move the needle enough to be taken seriously against two teams with five losses heading into the final third of the season.
Of course, that mindset isn't one OSU should carry into any games. Every opponent is a live dog, especially the Wolverines in Week 14 at "The Big House."
Still, all that Oracle money and TTUN still can't inspire more fear than a team that fired its coach midseason and another whose head coach may have wandering eyes if the Arch Manning experiment continues to sputter in Austin.
The biggest remaining test until the Indiana Hoosiers in the Big Ten Championship comes to town for the "Black Out" game at the "Shoe" for yet another Big Noon Kickoff.