BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — For weeks, Penn State coach James Franklin has been lauding the talent of his freshman punters, Danny Pasquariello and Chris Gulla. Even if their individual performances didn’t look much like anything to praise.
But at least for Pasquariello, Saturday’s 13-7 win over Indiana at Memorial Stadium represented a turnaround.
Franklin, for one, said it might have been a key to the win.
Pasquariello averaged just 37.3 yards per boot, but five of his nine punts pinned the Hoosiers inside their 20-yard line. It helped flip field position dramatically in the favor of the Nittany Lions on a day when their defense didn’t allow a single point.
For the game, Indiana’s offense averaged a start at its own 23. But eight of the Hoosiers’ 17 drives started inside the 20. Four started at the 16 or worse.
“It’s all about the field position battle,” senior punt returner Jesse Della Valle said. “(Pasquariello) is always booming punts in practice. For us as a punt unit, it was important to us as a punt return unit to protect him a little bit and give him some more time to get his kicks off. He did a really nice job today.”
Pasquariello got consistent hang time on his kicks, and Franklin praised him for deftly handling the one poor snap — a low roller in the first half that resulted in a punt pinning Indiana at its 17.
In all, the effort gave the Nittany Lions a chance to do what they have been aiming to do during the four-game losing streak: Give the defense a legitimate shot to win them a game.
“It’s hard to play field position football when you aren’t punting the ball really well,” Franklin said. “When you’re not consistent on offense, and then you’re not consistently punting the ball ... you want to put your defense in position to help you win the game. I know everybody is unbelievably excited about the special teams.”
That includes linebacker Mike Hull, the defense’s senior leader who has a way of putting things bluntly.
The mindset of the defense, he said, changes when it knows the offense has 80 yards, instead of 30 or 40, to travel before it finds the end zone. It becomes more aggressive, more confident. And, he said, it will ultimately help the struggling offense if the Lions continue to put opposing teams in bad spots.
“We know that they have a long way to go to score,” Hull said. “But also, if we stop them and get a three-and-out, our offense is going to have better field position.”
Operation shutdown
Indiana running back Tevin Coleman, the nation’s leading rusher, also had one of the best statistics in all of college football this season: In all but one game the Hoosiers played, he had broken a run of at least 43 yards.
He didn’t get close to that Saturday against the Nittany Lions’ top-ranked rushing defense, gaining just 71 yards on 20 carries.
His longest carry went for 17 yards, which, in his defense, was the longest run Penn State has allowed this season.
“It’s just a testament to playing team defense and staying focused the entire game,” Hull said. “He is a really good back, and we respected him all week. We knew what he was capable of. That’s why we were able to keep him in check.”
Seeing for Miles
Finally, Penn State got its top senior guard back on the field.
After weeks of being close, Miles Dieffenbach suited up and saw action for the first time since tearing an ACL in spring practice in March. As promised by Franklin, Dieffenbach didn’t see much playing time — just three series. But he saw action at both left and right guard and his teammates were thrilled to see him back on the field.
“Miles is one of the most mentally tough guys I know,” Della Valle said. “He’s just a guy that keeps battling no matter what happens to him. He’s a true fighter.”
Not taking it
After he threw Indiana senior guard Collin Rahrig to the ground in the second half, the flag flew, and Hull knew he’d have to explain what happened. The quiet senior captain just cost his team 15 yards for what, for him, would be considered rare unsportsmanlike conduct.
He’d be happy to take the heat, though.
While he followed the rusher that went out of bounds in front of him, Rahrig hit Hull behind the play and dangerously close to the knee area.
“I thought the play was over, just about, and he came in and tried to cut me, which I thought was unnecessary,” Hull said. “I shouldn’t have done it. But at the same time, I was pretty mad at the time.”
Penn State players tried to downplay their feelings, but they weren’t exactly pleased with the conduct of the Hoosiers. Remember, Indiana senior running back D’Angelo Roberts is the Hoosiers player whose low block on the side of linebacker Michael Mauti’s knee, leading to a torn ACL that ended his college career in 2012. Roberts wound up dealing with several Lions players in his limited playing time.
“As you could see out there,” linebacker Nyeem Wartman said, “there were some times when they were hitting people in the back. I’m not going to say they were dirty, because you just have to play. But a lot of unconventional things were happening out there. You just have to play and live with it.”
Anger management
Defensive tackle Austin Johnson, evidently angered by the absence of a holding call on the final play of the first half, slammed his helmet to the ground and appeared to yell at members of referee David Witvoet’s crew as they jogged into the locker room at halftime.
Franklin admonished Johnson, demanding he pick up his helmet and return to the locker room. He replaced him temporarily with backup Parker Cothren, not hiding the fact he was upset with Johnson’s reaction.
“He was really angry, and I’m OK with that a little bit,” Franklin said. “These are passionate guys, and this is an emotional game. I just don’t want some of the other stuff that went on.”