STATE COLLEGE — Penn State’s embattled offensive line might be getting a boost as early as Saturday’s game against Ohio State.
During his weekly teleconference Tuesday, coach James Franklin didn’t exactly rule out the possibility that guard Miles Dieffenbach, who has missed the entire season with a knee injury suffered during spring camp, could get some playing time this weekend when the No. 12 Buckeyes roll into Beaver Stadium.
“It’s a week-to-week thing,” Franklin said.
Dieffenbach suffered an ACL tear in March, and without his help, Penn State’s young replacements at guard have struggled to find continuity.
The running game has suffered, as none of Penn State’s three dynamic running backs — Bill Belton, Zach Zwinak and Akeel Lynch — have rushed for more than 258 yards through six games this season. Quarterback Christian Hackenberg has also been battered, being sacked 20 times already, just one less than he was dropped all of last season.
Typically, Franklin doesn’t discuss injuries. But he made an exception when discussing the status of Dieffenbach, who said during the summer he targeted a return to the field in late October.
“It’s not just a physical aspect, it’s the mental aspect of the injury as well,” Franklin said. “I think he’s doing some nice things. The bye weeks were huge for him.
“If he’s ready this week, we would love to have him in there, because I do think having him next to Donovan (Smith) is really valuable. Those guys have experience together, communicate extremely well together.”
Saying that he’d be playing next to Smith, Penn State’s junior left tackle, is news in its own right, considering to do so Dieffenbach would have to return to the left
guard spot he played last season. He had been working at right guard in March when he suffered the injury.
Still, the hint that he could be nearing a return might be the kind of news Penn State needs not just this week against Ohio State, but going forward into November, with the Nittany Lions still seeking bowl eligibility.
“To think he’s going to go from not playing at all to starting, that’s probably not going to happen,” Franklin said. “But if you can get him for a series or two, that will be great.”
Return to form?
After an eye-opening start to the season, Eugene Lewis has gone about a month without making an impact in the passing game.
He didn’t have fewer than five catches or 82 receiving yards in Penn State’s four wins. But in its two losses, he has just seven catches for 50 total yards and has dropped a few key passes.
Franklin said he had to meet with the former Wyoming Valley West star over the latest bye week to discuss his consistency, and he was happy with the results of the chat.
“I’m expecting Geno to have a big week and a real big second half of the season,” Franklin said. “There were some things that we needed to get cleaned up with a consistency standpoint with him. (I) had a meeting with him and it went extremely well.”
Being real
Franklin mentioned early in his teleconference that the Nittany Lions’ goal over the bye week was to simply keep the 46 players they are using in games healthy, fast and ready for the Ohio State game.
It also begged another question though, considering the team’s recent struggles on the field: What does he consider reasonable expectations for the team the rest of the season?
“I think the biggest thing is, I want our players and our fans and the community to feel really good about the direction and how we play,” Franklin said. “That’s the thing that’s important to me, that we come out and we play up to our abilities each week and we maximize that. I want people to be very, very comfortable with the direction of the program.
“What that means in wins and losses, I’m not sure.”
Franklin went on to say that he and his coaching staff have encountered similar issues rebuilding programs early on at their other stops, including Vanderbilt. But the difference at Penn State is that expectations remain high, despite scholarship restrictions.