ATLANTA — Penn State enters halftime at the Peach Bowl trailing by three points and leaving a lot to be desired offensively, especially at the receiver position.
The Nittany Lions scored two touchdowns in the second quarter and trailed Ole Miss by as many as 10, but they will get the ball to start the second half.
Here are some halftime thoughts:
RECEIVERS … OR LACK THEREOF
Penn State’s receivers have been nearly non-existent against the Rebels. Only one receiver, Trey Wallace, recorded an actual target in the first half.
With that being said, Omari Evans was an intended target on Drew Allar’s interception, but was not close enough to the ball when it was caught to record a target.
Five other Penn State offensive players recorded a target, none of which were receivers.
There needs to be some semblance of receivers getting the ball in the second half or it could be a long afternoon for the Nittany Lions offensively.
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Ole Miss took advantage of Penn State without its starting cornerbacks. They targeted freshman Zion Tracy quite a few times down the field with him being matched up against Tre Harris. Cam Miller got the starting nod at the other corner spot.
Harris was targeted nine hauling in five receptions for 63 yards in the first half. He often lined up against Tracy, but lined up against Miller quite a bit as well.
Penn State should be able to adjust accordingly to the Rebels plan in the second half, but it’s important to note, the cornerback situation could be pivotal down the stretch.
SLOWING THE GAME DOWN
Ole Miss was able to get comfortable running their offense in the first half. They featured a lot of up-tempo action and that was in large part due to Penn State not being able to keep them in check down the field. The ability of the Rebels to move fast kept the Nittany Lions on their heels defensively.
For Penn State, getting off the field on third down and limiting big chunks of yards on first needs to be a priority. If the Nittany Lions can slow the Rebels down, this game could work in the favor of Penn State.
