The Lions' Pride

We do, but their kickoff coverage has been great so far and our guys look very, very slow. Powell is only fast if he can get through the traffic and into open space. Otherwise, I don't think he looks very good.

The hold by Stank was a few yards past the play after Redd was already through the hole behind him. There was no need to hold to begin with, all he had to do was lot go instead of hanging on while the guy spun back towards the play and there would have no call.

psu qb's 5-17 43 yds

a very avg bama qb 13-19 110yds 1 td

who put's their players in a position to win... not psu

moye 0 catches... we tried to get devon smith the ball more times than moye that blows my mind

They just showed the replay again of the fake punt play. Our guys were jumping all over the place and were so hyped. It's going to take me forever to get over that call. All the momentum in the world, up 3-0 and on the opposing 40 ahhhh.

Still got 2 quarters to play. A stop on the opening drive is crucial.

Last year i thought the score was closer than the game. This year I think the opposite. A few plays really are killing us. The fumble obviously is self inflicted, but the fake punt spot, the holding penalty, the no interference on Moo Moo when Mcgloin threw to him.... Those calls go a little differently and the game is at the least closer.

I do now think it is obvious we need to keep Bolden in there. He is the future.

We better start rotating the DL guys in, or else they are going to be getting 8-10 yards a clip on the ground. If we're goign to continue to let them possess the ball, we better damn well rotate guys in.

Both plays ended up being TD's the other way. You can't hope for the other team to fall apart though...PSU simply can not move the ball consistently on offense. They have no identity on O and that has been the case for a long time. They have no vision and I really can't wait for the day where PSU has true OC instead of the good ole boy network. Are we a power team....no. Are we a spread team..no. Is PSU a passing team...No. No identity = no plan and no real strength. Defense really did not play all that bad. They gave up some crap underneath, but they tackled way better and the DL is actually making a push. I feel for them as they are going to be tired as hell being on the field all game long.

PSU's offense has done a great job of converting on 3rd and longs.

These mistakes and bad ref calls are just eating me up.

Djokovic just knocked Federer out of the U.S. Open for any Tennis fans out there.

Bama does get credit. They are making the most of the opportunities.

I look at the field, and to me...we have the talent. The difference is Bama is getting the 50/50 plays and making the most of them, and of course the coaching.

Alabama is the better team, but not by a far stretch IMO.

First half thoughts:

- Removing Rob Bolden from the game absolutely killed Penn State. Thought the Lions were moving the ball well at that point, even though they had just three points. McGloin came in and provided no lift like he has done in the past. Bolden has been very accurate on most of his throws, and once again drops and untimely mistakes (the fumble, the Stankiewitch hold) have really killed him. He should be the guy from here on out, no doubt in my mind.

- The offensive line has been good in the run game and OK in pass protection. Quinn Barham is outmanned on the left side.

- Using all the timeouts on the first drive was also huge and inexcusable.

- Not only does Penn State have to stop force feeding Devon Smith, Smith has to actually make something happen when the ball does go his way. This could be a completely different ballgame if he hangs on to that first pass.

- The defense looks tired. It's getting impact plays from Devon Still and Mike Mauti, but other than that it's not getting a whole lot. Nate Stupar provided a nice lift when he's in there. Overall, OK against the run but the zone is getting torn apart, especially over the middle. That excellent catch by Marquis Maze on third down in the first quarter was probably the biggest play so far.

- Ton of recruits on hand for this. Saw Joel Caleb, Demetrious Cox, Canaan Severin and a number of others in addition to most of the Penn State Class of 2012. Did not see Kent Taylor down there but that doesn't mean he's not here. Still haven't gone through the pictures. The flyover was pretty cool, too.

-Talking about making the most of their opportunities, Bama with three more plays that Penn State, but outgained the Lions by 79 yards; 171-92.

-The Tide have converted on 6 of their 10 third down opportunities, and most of them haven't been close. Penn State defense playing too far off Richardson on those plays, he has been open and an easy check down for McCarron, who has settled in to a nice groove (13-19 for 110 and a TD.)

-Bolden is 5-14 for 43 yards, McGloin 0-3. No INTs from either, though.

-Redd looks good, and has found/made some holes, but has had to do a bit too much work behind the line on some runs rather than getting north and south. Still, 14 rushes for 47 yards is a productive first half and was the lone bright spot for PSU in the first half.

Spot on, Sean.