If You're Done Arguing, Kids…
… let an adult explain to you how this works.
As a Penn State fan, it was difficult to write this while hiding from the Pitt Panthers in my basement alongside James Franklin and new Athletic Director Patrick Kraft.
Yet, here we are, looking at a #7 ranked team with at least three returning starters with first round potential – tackle Ola Fashanu, edge rusher Chop Robinson, and cornerback Kalen King (who may be even better than Joey Porter, Jr.) - against a schedule that has only one potential stumbling block (Iowa, Week 4 at Beaver Stadium for a primetime White Out) between a 6-0 arrival in Columbus on October 21st.
If they're scared of anything this year in particular, it's that trip to Columbus and the visit three weeks following from the Michigan Wolverines. Because if the Nittany Lions can win both of those games, they're going to the final four-team edition of the College Football Playoff.
And that is, as it should be, still the stated goal for Penn State football: A trip to the College Football Playoff.
And therein lies the answer to why we haven't seen Penn State schedule Pitt on an annual basis.
Franklin wants to go to the playoffs. The one time in the last decade he would've been there was the year they lost to Pitt. It doesn't mean Penn State is scared of Pitt. It means they understand the formula for getting to the playoffs, and it involves no more than one non-conference game against a Power Five opponent on the schedule.
When you play in the SEC or the Big Ten, and a conference championship with one loss or fewer is scoring you a guaranteed CFP trip, you don't place non-conference landmines all over your schedule, whether it's WVU, Pitt, or anyone else.
In the ACC or Big XII, a one-loss conference championship against a softer schedule may not be enough to get you in to the four-team CFP. So you take the roll of the dice that is scheduling two Power Five opponents, whether it's Tennessee and WVU, or Penn State and Oklahoma State, or whatever configuration makes sense, in order to beef up your schedule and hopefully impress the committee should you arrive in December with just one loss.
It's as simple as that.
Penn State isn't scared of Pitt. They're scared of stubbing their toe against a Power Five non-con and costing themselves a CFP appearance when they don't have to expose themselves to that kind of risk.
That's not scared. That's smart.
Whole lot smarter than anything going on in Morgantown, anyway.
See ya September 2nd, Crowley.
Mr. Jones and Me
With one, final preseason game left for the Steelers, there is a lot to be impressed with thus far, especially on the offensive side of the ball. There are plenty of roster questions still left though.
Is Joey Porter Jr. ready to start or will he be eased into the top cornerback rotation?
Will the crunch of four tight ends create an issue elsewhere on the roster?
Is Anthony McFarland a lock as a third running back?
With Cole Holcomb, Elandon Roberts, Kwon Alexander, and Mark Roberts all inside, how many off-ball linebackers will be kept and what will the rotation look like?
Does this team have a back-up center it trusts?
Is there a starting nose tackle, or will there be a rotation between rookie Keeanu Benton, free agent signing Breiden Fehoko, and the returning Montravius Adams?
Last, but certainly not least, when will see first round pick Broderick Jones seize a starting tackle job?
Jones has been good in training camp and the preseason. Or at least good enough. But Dan Moore Jr. has clearly been better.
And you don't trade with Darth Belichick to move up three spots in the first round in order to get good enough. You do it to get great.
Jones has not been the beast many of us expected we were getting, and certainly has not been great.
None of this is to say Jones can't become that. But to watch him brought along slowly, most likely waiting to get into the lineup at some point in the regular season due to lack of performance or injury will be frustrating for those of us that wanted to see him make an immediate impact.
Can he do enough in preseason game three to kick down the door to a starting position? It's doubtful.
But it gives us one more reason to watch tonight.
#Cutch300
Following Tuesday night's home run, Andrew McCutchen is not sitting at 299 for his career.
Make no mistake about it, this is one of the reasons McCutchen and the Pirates decided to reunite this past winter. 2,000 hits, 300 home runs, and a chance to mentor what should be the next contending version of the Pirates all appealed to him, and all of those things plus the positive public relations aspect appealed to the club.
And that's ok.
Not to dredge back up the whole "they just did it for the P.R." argument, but if the worst case scenario is playing out in front of us -Cutch returns, reaches a couple of milestones, helps teach some young kids what it takes to compete in the bigs, and sells some tickets- what's wrong with that?
Nevermind the fact that a recent run of .500 ball has them pacing toward a 12-win improvement over last season.
Add another 12 wins next year and they'll be playoff team.
