Auburn football schedule analysis: Grading the Penn State Nittany Lions

Auburn vs Penn State may be one of the most pivotal matchups of the season.

This is the third article in a series grading Auburn’s opponents by position group.

This is a revenge game.

Unfortunately, the schedule makers couldn't do Auburn the favor of making this a night game, but nonetheless, the Tigers are seeking revenge in this matchup.

The best part? Instead of a White Out, fans get to appreciate an all-orange day inside Jordan-Hare Stadium.

I've already taken a closer look at this game and explained why Auburn should have a much better shot to win this than the national media might think, but I have yet to take a dive into the individual position groups for PSU.

Here's how Penn State shapes up this season.

Quarterback: B-

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Clifford has had his fair share of ups and downs with the Nittany Lions. Despite his inconsistencies against top 25 opponents, Clifford has amassed over 8,000 yards of total offense during his four seasons with PSU, something only two other Penn State players have ever done. 

He enters his fifth and final season with not much expectation to improve. He threw 21 touchdowns to eight interceptions last season. The passing offense was 26th nationally (268.5 yards per game). Unless the switch simply flips, there's not a ton of reason to believe Clifford gets much better than slightly above average on a night in and night out basis.

Against Auburn in 2021 Clifford completed 28 of his 32 passes for 280 yards and two touchdowns. The Tigers will need to send some more pressure to effect his decision making this time around. His 89.9 adjusted quarterback rating was the second-best of his career against a top 25 opponent.

Running Back: B-

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Penn State's returning leading rusher is Keyvone Lee, who ran for 530 yards on 108 carries. Backup Noah Cain transferred to LSU, so five-star freshman Nick Singleton will likely receive quite a few touches this season.

Unless Lee or Singleton over perform, the ground game is not a strength of this offense. There should be minor improvement over last year's rushing totals (107.8 yards per game, 118th nationally) but overall not a huge step up considering how often PSU will elect to throw.

Wide Receiver: A-

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This is the strength of the offense. 1,000-yard receiver Jahan Dotson is off to the NFL, but the core of Parker Washington (820 yards, four touchdowns), KeAndre Lambert-Smith (521 yards, three touchdowns), and tight end Brenton Strange (225 yards, three touchdowns) is strong.

Add in Western Kentucky transfer Mitchell Tinsley, and this may be one of the better receiving cores in the Big Ten. Tinsley had 1,402 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns for the Hilltoppers last season.

Offensive Line: C-

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There's not a lot of positives when it comes to performance in the trenches. Two starters return from an offensive line that mustered 3.2 yards per carry (117th nationally) and finished 97th nationally in sacks allowed (34).

Penn State will have to borderline go air raid mode if the o-line isn't improved this season.

Offensive outlook vs Auburn:

Penn State has a very solid group of playmakers at receiver that could give Auburn major problems. The major concern for offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich is finding ways to take pressure off of quarterback Sean Clifford, who has struggled at times against better competition. I doubt Clifford replicates his performance from last season, especially if Auburn's defensive line elects to apply more pressure on an already questionable offensive line.

Shutting down Parker Washington, Mitchell Tinsley, and KeAndre Lambert-Smith will be very difficult for the Tigers.

Defensive Line: B-

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Penn State's defensive line was pretty average in 2021. Average rush defense, average pass rush, average overall production. However, a pair of defensive lineman that were key cogs of the front seven were injured for the most of the season. PJ Mustipher is Penn State's best run stopper. He suffered a season-ending injury halfway through the year vs Iowa.

Defensive end Adisa Isaac was a solid role player in 2020 but suffered an offseason injury that sidelined him for all of 2021.

Coziah Izzard (21 tackles, two sacks) and Nick Tarburton (29 tackles, one sack) are returning starters as well.

Linebacker: C+

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Both of Penn State's top tackles from 2021 (Ellis Brooks and Brandon Smith) graduated from this unit. Chris Jacobs (61 tackles) is the only returning starter. In order to make this unit look better this season (given the lack of experience) the defensive line is going to have to do a better job of stopping runs at the line of scrimmage.

Defensive Back: B

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Safety Ji'Ayir Brown (73 tackles, six interceptions) is back, as is corner Joey Porter Jr. (51 tackles, one interception).

The Nittany Lions had a sound secondary in 2021, finishing 23rd nationally in pass defense (199.8 yards per game). PSU was also 6th nationally in yards per attempt (5.9) and 8th nationally in pass defense rating (111.04).

Special Teams: C+

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Penn State is replacing kicker and punter Jordan Stout. Jake Pinegar made 20 of his 25 field goal attempts in 2020 before being replaced by Stout. Freshman Alex Bachetta will handle punting duties.

It will be interesting to see how the Nittany Lions handle punt returns after the departure of Dotson.

Defensive outlook vs Auburn: 

Controlling the line of scrimmage will be important for Penn State. Not allowing Tank Bigsby to get into a rhythm and putting Auburn in passing situations. Unfortunately, with the inexperience at linebacker, there may be some holes in that Penn State secondary that come open if the Tigers can get creative.

Getting off of the field on third down will help Penn State's chances.

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