There are a number of issues people can point to when it comes to Penn State football, and while the defense has shown more positives than the offense, it’s not free of blame.
Defensive coordinator Jim Knowles came over from Ohio State, with a championship pedigree, and brought his multi-layered defense with him. Knowles’ scheme is predicated on players being able to rotate and move in ways that challenge some traditional defensive principles, and prior to this season, it’s worked very well.
But the last two weeks have been a defensive struggle. Against Oregon, it was a combination of the Ducks’ offensive success, defensive miscues and fatigue after so much time on the field. But no one expected the Nittany Lions to give up 42 points to then-winless UCLA, even with Tony Rojas out due to injury.
So why? Why has the defense not played up to the expectation it had before the season? Is it the players’ poor execution of the scheme, or is it the scheme not fitting the personnel?
James Franklin has said it’s partially about players needing to play with more speed and confidence on defense, and he was asked prior to the Northwestern game about whether or not it’s more on the players or the system five games into the year.
“It’s a combination of both,” Franklin said. “Ultimately, it’s on us to give themenough that they can go out and play winning defense, because if it’s too simplistic, that’s going to be a problem as well.
“It’s also those guys trusting in their training and letting it fly.”
Losing Rojas certainly complicates things as Franklin, Knowles and the staff may have to look to some younger players or players without a lot of experience, whether that’s Cam Smith, Keon Wylie, Anthony Speca or others.
The question then becomes whether or not those players can effectively and consistently communicate in Knowles’ 4-2-5 defense that has a lot of moving parts. Any defensive scheme needs quality linebackers and safeties, but it’s more amplified in this system.
“Anthony Poindexter talks about it all the time: if you make a mistake at safety, it’ll cost you 7 points,” Franklin said. “And if you’re making mistakes at linebacker, and you can’t run the defense, then it’s hard to execute.
“For those positions, it’s a little bit more magnified, but obviously it’s going to be important for us moving forward.”
It’s important to mention that Knowles, who was officially hired at the end of January, likely had very little involvement with prep recruiting or transfer portal on Penn State’s behalf, and with a scheme as dynamic as his, it’s imperative to have players who fit that scheme. Without that, the challenge then becomes figuring out how to fit a square peg in a round hole.
Maybe that changes once the season concludes. But unfortunately, that’s not going to solve the current issue at hand. If Penn State is to keep its faint College Football Playoff hopes alive, it needs to find an answer, whether that’s a lineup change or a scheme change, now. And Jim Knowles is given a lot of responsibility, and compensation, to find that answer.
This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Can Penn State football succeed with a Jim Knowles defense?
