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The Penn State Nittany Lions picked up one of the more impressive wins of the opening week of the college football season when they went into Morgantown and dismantled West Virginia, 34-12.
But through a quarter and a half, Week 2 isn’t exactly going according to plan. The Nittany Lions returned home to take on MAC opponent Bowling Green.
Despite entering the game as a more than 35-point favorite, the Nittany Lions fell behind the Falcons 17-7 and could not seem to slow down BGSU quarterback Connor Bazelak.
Bazelak began the game 15-of-19 for 174 yards and two touchdowns. And, as you can imagine, Penn State fans were not happy about it.
#PennState is now down 17-7. #FireEverybody pic.twitter.com/Smvm27ZvA9
— Message Board Geniuses (@BoardGeniuses) September 7, 2024
Don’t believe us? Let’s just check out their message board.
“Can we fire (defensive coordinator Tom) Allen mid-game? They shouldn’t get 17 all game. 17 in the first 20 minutes in beyond embarrassing,” one fan wrote.
“Surely it got better,” you ask.
Well, sort of. Penn State came back to tie the game at 17-17 after a big fourth-down stop. But on the ensuing Bowling Green possession, the Falcons marched right down the field to take a 24-17 lead.
“This is honestly embarrassing. Secondary is supposed to be a strength of this team,” one fan complained.
Penn State hired Allen after former defensive coordinator Manny Diaz left to become the head coach of the Duke Blue Devils.
Allen, however, doesn’t come in with a ton of momentum. He was fired as the head coach of the Indiana Hoosiers after the 2023 season. And his defenses weren’t exactly lighting it up of late.
Over the last five seasons, Allen had just one defense that ranked in the top 50 in the country in yards per play.
2019: 5.8 (88th)
2020: 5.4 (53rd)
2021: 5.3 (42nd)
2022: 5.6 (78th)
2023: 5.8 (101st)
Sure, the Hoosiers weren’t exactly talent-laden. But that’s not a good look. And things aren’t looking much better at Penn State.