Penn State-Notre Dame 2nd Half Observations

Penn State played a little better in the 2nd half. The defense dominated the entire game, yielding 0 (yes, zero) rushing yards to a weak Notre Dame team. Penn State wins at the "White House" 31-10. Not as dominant as I had hoped; the offense didn't start running the ball well until deep into the 2nd half. But they got the job done. Up next: a tough one versus Buffalo. Yikes! All but guaranteed for a 3-0 start heading to Ann Arbor for the Big Ten opener versus Michigan (who plays winless Notre Dame next week). Could UM be 0-3 when Penn State visits? We shall see. On a side note, this is the first time EVER that Notre Dame AND Michigan started a season 2-0. Anyway, back to PSU-ND... Jimmy Clausen didn't play bad. Charlie Weis didn't unleash much of the playbook, allowing Clausen to rarely throw anything over 10 yards. You think Weis would have altered the game plan after Penn State forced 5 straight 3 and outs? Nope, he didn't. I understand Clausen is young (as arrogant and cocky as he is, he will be a great college QB) but Penn State shut Notre Dame down the entire game, sans the opening drive. The Penn State D gave up only 3 points (ND's TD came from an INT return). While I'm confident Penn State is a good team, should be Top 15 the whole year, they showed why they aren't dominant. Their offensive line is pathetic. Morelli was constantly pressured and they didn't get a ground game going until the very end of the 3rd quarter. That won't cut it against Wisconsin and Ohio State.

Overall, a win is a win. The team is good but they have work to do if they want to reach their ultimate goal: New Orleans.