Read Sports Geek’s argument that the Texas Longhorns have a good chance to go undefeated in 2009 and Loyal Homer’s argument that the Florida Gators will go undefeated.
This one started out as a toss-up.
The Big Ten champion will be an undefeated team this year, and will most likely be decided on November 7th at Happy Valley. That’s the night when The Ohio State Buckeyes head to Beaver Stadium to take on the Nittany Lions of Penn State. Both teams will be coming into the game undefeated (you can quote me on that!), but “One of the ‘O’s will have to go.” It will be the victor of this game that goes on to finish the season undefeated, with a spot in at least the Rose Bowl waiting for them in January.
But which team will it be? Since, for the sake of today’s question, I can’t be vague and say “the team that wins this game will be undefeated” … I’m forced to make a choice. That choice is Penn State.
Let me say to all the Buckeye faithful out there that this was a close call for me. I do believe that Ohio State will avenge their loss to the USC Trojans from last year when they play again in Columbus. I also would not be surprised if Ohio State went on to beat Penn State and claim their 5th Big Ten title in as many years.
However, to go into Penn State and win is no easy task, especially when the Buckeyes lost so much talent to the NFL this past season (four of whom were selected in the first two rounds of the draft). So, I am allowing home-field advantage to sway my opinion, and I am giving the nod to Penn State.
Why, then, am I spending so much time talking about one game when the question for today is to identify which team will go undefeated for the entire season? The answer is because this one game IS the entire season for Penn State. Outside of their game against the Buckeyes in November, there is not a team on their 12-game schedule that can even HOPE to upset the Nittany Lions.
To put it bluntly – Penn State will go undefeated in the 2009 football season because of an extremely weak schedule.
Their non-conference games come at home against Akron, Syracuse, Temple, and Eastern Illinois, all of whom finished the 2008 season with a collective 18-30 record (don’t expect much better this year). Within the Big Ten Conference they are slotted to play at home against Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio State, and Indiana and then going on the road to face Illinois, Northwestern, Michigan, and Michigan State.
Playing Michigan in Ann Arbor USED to be intimidating. That is until Appalachian State and Toledo proved it was not THAT big of a deal over the past two seasons. As for the remaining Big Ten matchups, the teams are either too young or not talented enough to match up against the Nittany Lions.
When you look at Penn State’s roster, the name on top of the list of returning talent is senior quarterback Daryll Clark. Last season, Clark threw for over 2,500 yards and earned a 143.44 passer rating. He also tossed 19 touchdown passes against only six interceptions, was a consensus first team All-Big Ten selection, and a semifinalist for both the Maxwell and Davey O’Brien awards. Along with Clark, running back Evan Royster will again be featured in the backfield after a 2008 season with more than 1,200 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns.
Do not forget Penn State is also led by the winningest coach in FBS college football, Joe Paterno. The Hall of Fame legend known affectionately as ‘Joe-Pa’ proved again last year that age has no bearing on one’s ability to succeed, as he led his Nittany Lions to a share of the Big Ten title (his third since joining the Big Ten in 1993) and was subsequently named Big Ten coach of the year.
This debate is not about identifying the team with the toughest strength of schedule. Nor is it about identifying the team that would be most impressive in going undefeated. It was to identify which team has the best chance of finishing 2009 without a loss. Penn State’s leadership, on AND off the field, combined with their cupcake schedule, puts them right at the front of that line.
