10 | The Behrend Beacon
Penn State stopped by Northwestern
By Ray Parrillo
Knight Ridder Newspapers
(KRT)
STATE COLLEGE. Pa. _ The pass was there and
so was Michael Robinson, the Penn State receiver
with the surest hands and the burning desire
to make up for a mistake that had put the Nittany
Lions into an early hole.
If that scenario sounds hopeful for the angry, frus
trated folks who trek to the middle of nowhere and
file into Beaver Stadium believing things
just can't get any worse for Coach Joe Patemo and
his team, well, you haven't been following Penn
State football these days.
What came next now that's Penn State football
In full stride and with a step on his defender at
the Northwestern 2-yard line, Robinson dropped the
perfectly thrown pass from Zack Mills with
under four minutes remaining in the fourth quarter
and Patemo and the Nittany Lions were once again
left to grope for explanations for yet another
loss.
This time, Penn State went down, 14-7, in a Big
Ten Conference game as Northwestern took advan
tage of a poorly thrown pass by Robinson to
get an early touchdown, then used its massive of
fensive line and the tough running of Noah Herron
to protect its first ever win at Beaver Stadium.
"Oh man, I've got to make that catch," Robinson
said after Penn State (2-7, 0-6 Big Ten) lost a con
ference game for the 13th time in the last 14
tries and sank below Illinois into last place. "As
soon as I came off rr” break the ball was right there
and it kind of shocked me. I got my hands up a
little late. But at this level I’ve got to make that play
and I didn't. It was a great pass."
Although the attendance was announced as
100,353 in the 108,000-seat stadium, there appeared
to be at least 15,000 empty seats. There’s no
logical reason to expect to fill a stadium for a team
that has so many problems on offense.
When Mills tossed a 2-yard pass to tight end Isaac
Smolko to tie the game, 7-7, just before the half
time break, it was Penn State's fourth TD in
the past six games. Mills, who once again was ser
enaded with boos, pointed to the sky and briefly
pumped his fist.
"It was about time, you know," said a dejected
Pittsburgh Steelers are the NFL’s keystone
by Chris LaFuria
sports commentary
For all of you Pennsylvanians who have
followed the Pittsburgh Steelers religiously,
watched as the team of the 70s suffered
throughout the 90s, mourned the Steelers’
inability to make the playoffs, and wit
nessed a countless amount of failed proph
ets at the quarterback position, this might
just be your year.
As of Week 9 of the 2004-2005 NFL sea
son, the Pittsburgh Steelers sit atop the NFC
North with a record of 7-1. Led by rookie
sensation “Big Ben” Roethlisberger, run
ning back Duce Staley, wide receiver Hines
Ward, and a defense that has given up the
second fewest offensive yards all season,
the Steelers have already surpassed pre
season expectations.
In the 2004 preseason, Tommy Maddox
was at the helm of the Steelers. After go
ing 1-1 in the first two games of the sea
son, an injury to Maddox left the Steelers
with many questions as to the future and
direction of the team.
In comes Ben Roethlisberger. The 11"’
pick of the 2004 draft, Roethlisberger took
control of a team that doubted his ability.
Many coaches in the NFL avoid starting a
rookie in the same way people avoid
telemarketers. Upon hearing of the team’s
decision to go with Roethlisberger, all-pro
left guard Alan Faneca stated that he didn't
appreciate “going to work with some little
young kid that just got out of college.” Ig
noring all negative criticism, Roethlisberger
is now 6-0 as a starter.
The ancient sports cliche states, “Offense
wins games, and defense wins champion
ships.” If the Steelers wish to bring the
Lombardi trophy back to western PA, their
defense, who only allows 81 rushing yards
a game and has held teams to under 17
points a game, needs to maintain their stable
attack and keep up strong performances by
linebacker James Farrior and safety Troy
Polamalu.
Head Coach Bill Cowher, who started his
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Tony Hunt (26) of Penn State runs the ball against Notherwestern defense in the fourth quater.
Northwestern defeated Penn State, 14-7, in State College, Pennsylvania, on Nov. 6, 2004
Mills, who completed 21 of 34 passes for 183 yards,
but will likely step aside next week against
Indiana so that freshman Anthony Morelli can get
some work
"Everybody's always wanting something new,"
added Mills, a fifth-year senior who returned after
sitting out last week's game against lowa with
a concussion. "They'll get it in two more games."
Afterward, Patemo said he put aside his plan to
give Morelli some playing time because he thought
the team had a better chance of winning with
Mills.
"I told him (Morelli) a couple of times to get
ready," Patemo said. "I was very close. If we had
gotten behind by more than a touchdown I
era in 1992, has made some critical and
highly criticized moves that have been
proven beneficial to the team. Cowher, at
the depth of the Steelers failure, was teased
by many sports analysts who testified that
the only reason he was the coach is the in
timidation effect he had on his players.
One anonymous writer is credited with
saying, "The only reason Cowher is coach
is because he spits when he screams.” This
chronic spitter is the mastermind behind the
decision to start Roethlisberger when
people disagreed and named the obsoles
cent Jerome Bettis starter in place of the
injured Duce Staley.
The Steelers have relied on a myriad of
stars to lead each week. In week 9, a sur
prising Bettis carried the ball 33 times for
149 yards and was named offensive Player
of the Week. Hines Ward caught a touch
down pass and ran for another in the win
over the Eagles. In week 6, James Farrior
recorded 6 tackles and 2 sacks as the
Steelers defeated the Dallas Cowboys.
Week 6 w as also the week in which the of
fensive Player of the Week honor went to
Tom Brady.
Another leading factor in the Steelers’
success is their quality wins. In consecu
tive weeks, the Steelers have managed to
dethrone two undefeated teams at Heinz
f ield. The New England Patriots charged
into Pittsburgh with a 21-game win streak
and were dealt a 34-20 loss. The undefeated
Eagles, led by the obnoxious Terrell Owens,
saw their undefeated record destroyed by
the Steelers defense by the score of 27-3.
The amazing stat of the two games is the
time of possession. In the two games, the
Steelers maintained the ball for 84:47com
pared to their opponents 35:13.
Is this the Steelers’ year? Can they over
come their recent struggle to obtain a
greater status among NFL teams? We may
not know the answers but the evidence
proves advantageous for Steel-City. It may
only be midseason, but if nobody can con
tain the Steelers’ offense and suppress their
defense, we may see a dynasty in the mak
ing.
probably would have stuck him in, but I didn't want
to sit Zack on the bench when I thought we still
had a shot at it."
On its first play from scrimmage, Penn State tried
some razzle-dazzle. Good idea. Bad execution.
Mills handed the ball to running back Tony
Hunt, who then gave it to Robinson. Mark Rubin
was open deep, but Robinson, pressured from be
hind, threw a pass to Hunt that was intercepted
by strong safety Dominique Price at the Northwest
ern 33-yard line.
"The primary receiver (Rubin) was way down
field and he was open but I didn't think I could get
it to him," Robinson said. "And then I saw
Tony wide open and tried to get it to him, but the
Fan Jam tips off Behrend basketball season
by Bryan L. Spry
staff writer
The 2004 Fan Jam tips off the
Behrend men’s and women’s basket
ball season tonight at 7:00 p.m. Fan
Jam is a yearly event to promote the
upcoming basketball season.
This year’s Fan Jam will include two
inter squad scrimmages, one by the
men’s team and one by the women’s,
performances by both the Behrend
cheerleading team and Behrend dance
team, free food, and a chance to win
great prizes.
Fan Jam begins tonight at 7:00 p.m.
in the Junker Center with free pizza for
those in attendance. The Behrend
women’s basketball team will then be
introduced to the crowd, after which
they will be divided up to play a fif
teen minute inter quad scrimmage of
blue vs. white.
Next, the Fan Jam crowd will be able
to cheer along as the Penn State
Behrend Cheerleading team and dance
team fire up the tremendous Behrend
school spirit that we all possess. Each
team is sure to put on a spectacular
show to get everyone wanting a lot
more, basketball that is.
The Behrend men’s basketball team
What: A new series of spiritual lesions taught at Grace Baptist Church starting
Saturday, Ncv. 13*
Who: Everyone welcomel (esp. college students!)
When: Saturdays ats:3o - 6:30 PM
*On Saturday, November 14 Grace Baptist Church will be hosting a FfUßf
phew get-together right after the service. Come prepared for analgetic music,
and a very unusual expereince that you would not consider "typical church*.
then takes the floor. After their intro
duction, they will put on another fif
teen minute inter squad scrimmage.
This is sure to be a great preview of
what the men’s basketball team is
bringing to the AMCC this year.
After the scrimmages have ended,
the crowd will be invited to participate
in all sorts of exciting games with
chances to win coupons from our spon
sors, including Me Donald’s and
Burger King. There will be an event
held at each basket on the court. There
will be a free throw competition, a
three point shootout, an elbow shot,
and the crowd favorite, make a lay-up
with the “Big Ball.”
Everyone is invited to attend. Stacy
Pondo, the assistant to the director of
athletics said, “This is a chance for the
community, as well as the student body
and faculty of Behrend, to come out
and meet the Penn State Behrend bas
ketball team players before the season
begins.” Our goal is to raise the Penn
State Behrend school spirit to the level
I know we can achieve,” said Stacy
Pondo.
The Director of Athletics at Penn
State Behrend, Brian Streeter, says,
“The Fan Jam also gives the little li
ons a chance to come out and partici-
mmcrmmnmmcHam
Friday, November 12, 2004
safety came over and made a great play. He read
my eyes."
The Wildcats (5-4,4-2) cashed in. On third-and
-10, Jonathan Fields made a nice cutback and broke
free for 51 yards after taking a screen pass. A
facemask penalty against Penn State's Alan Zemaitis
was tacked on to the play, giving Northwestern first
down at the 8-yard line.
Herron ran to the 1 but left the game in a daze
after taking a big hit from cornerback Anwar
Phillips. Terrell Jordan plowed into the end zone
for a 7-0 Northwestern lead.
Herron made a remarkable comeback, running
for 175 yards on 30 carries. He scored the eventual
game-winner with a 1-yard TD early in the
fourth quarter, finishing off an impressive 83-yard
drive.
"He was out of it for a while, not knowing what
was going on," Northwestern Coach Randy Walker
said.
Penn State's offense knows the feeling. Anyone
wondering why the Nittany Lions have scored 47
points in their seven losses can reference an
ugly sequence in the third quarter, when the score
was tied, 7-7 and Penn State had first down at the
Northwestern 12-yard line.
First down: a 10-yard penalty on tight end John
Bronson for an illegal block. That was followed by
a 2-yard completion, an incompletion, a draw
play for 6 yards and, finally, a missed 31 -yard field
goal by Robbie Gould.
In a reference to Penn State's unhappy follow
ers, Patemo said, "Nobody likes to lose. I appreci
ate any of the sentiments of the people who are
upset with our losing. They have every right to be
upset. That isn't what concerns me because I can't
do anything about them being upset. I've got to
do something about trying to make our team bet
ter."
Notes. Linebacker Dan Connor, a freshman from
Strath Haven High, had 16 tackles in his second
start of the season, the most by a Penn State
player in two years. Defensive tackle Scott Paxson,
a junior from Roman Catholic High, had his fifth
blocked field goal this season, and the
seventh of his career.
pate in the sport with the actual
Behrend basketball teams. The Little
Lions are the kids from the commu
nity that have attended the summer
basketball camp offered here at
Behrend,” Brian Streeter said.
“I think that Fan Jam is a great thing
because it promotes the school as well
as the athletic teams,” said freshman
Morgan Coleman, DUS. Coleman also
said, “It gets the school spirit up be
fore the season begins and gives the
students and community a chance to
meet the players.”
The Penn State Behrend basketball
season begins next weekend with the
Behrend Tournament. The men are
scheduled to play Case Western Friday
Nov. 19 at 8 p.m. The Lady Lions will
start their season the following night,
Nov. 20 as they host Juniata.
This year’s men’s basketball team is
looking forward to bettering their
record from last year and going deeper
into the AMCC tournament. The
women’s team is trying to defend their
AMCC title from last year. The sup
port from the student body is always
an advantage to the team, so come out
and show your school spirit tonight at
7 p.m. in the Junker Center.