The Penn State defense has drawn the attention of the Temple Owls before their Week 2 matchup.
When head coach Matt Campbell decided to leave Iowa State to come join the Penn State Nittany Lions, it was somewhat of a risk for him.
After all, Campbell had seen a lot of success with the Cyclones and going to a new program is never easy. But Campbell wanted the challenge of coaching at a school like Penn State, and while it's only been one game of his tenure, it's been good so far.
Campbell was able to get a big win to open the season, taking down Marshall 45-0 in impressive fashion. During the game, the Penn State defense really stood out, limiting Marshall from the opening kickoff.
Overall, the Thundering Herd only put up 147 total yards on offense, while coughing up two turnovers in the game. Penn State really held Marshall in check on the ground, only allowing 44 yards rushing.
The defense, which is led by coordinator D'Anton Lynn, made an early-season statement. And heading into Week 2 against Temple, Owls head coach K.C. Keeler made it a point to praise the defensive unit.
“I am really impressed with their defense. They’re long, they’re athletic, they have a lot of them. They’ve got five defensive ends that are all really good football players,” Keeler said. “Their quarterback has played more games than any college quarterback in the country, and he’s just so confident and just such a steady player.”
Lynn helped turn around both the UCLA and USC defenses before coming to Penn State this past offseason. The veteran coach is one of the best defensive minds in college football, and the Nittany Lions are lucky to have him.
Campbell himself gave credit to Lynn and the defensive players for helping to set the tone against Marshall.
“So much credit goes to Coach Lynn and that defensive style,” Campbell said. “I think the ability to try to be multiple in terms of what we showed them, but simple in terms of our ability to execute, especially in Game 1, and I think that really evolved over the last two weeks. I just thought our guys were really keyed in.”
Penn State's defense isn't likely to pitch shutouts every week, but this was an excellent start for the team as a whole. The performance has given this program a big boost going into Week 2, and the Nittany Lions have a good chance to start the year 2-0 if they can play up to par.
