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Some nitpicking as Penn State makes its first trip to Washington since taking a train there in 1921 (and winning 21-7):
Ugly incidents in college football are on the rise. Beyond the midseason firings of head coaches and coordinators that have become common, there are reports of families being harassed by unruly fans.
Nebraska coach Matt Rhule disclosed this week, after a last-minute home loss to Washington, that a fan fired an expletive at his 13-year-old daughter.
While leaving the field with his family, USC coach Lincoln Riley responded to an insult by Ohio State's athletic director after the Trojans' win last week.
James Franklin's daughters were subjected to taunts during his time after big losses at Penn State.
A couple thoughts: No. 1, young family members have no place on the field - especially after emotional defeats. This isn't bring your child to work day. No. 2, when will these schools learn that teams shouldn't be entering and exiting in the same tunnel? It's a recipe for trouble. No. 3, NIL and transient rosters have fueled fans' frustration, but the above behavior is still not justified.
NITPICKING
No Penn State player's stock is on the rise more than cornerback Audavion Collins. He has become a lock-down corner and solidified the team's best position. The Lions' fastest player with a 4.28 time in the 40-yard dash, last week Collins actually got a snap on offense and turned that into an 11-yard gain. With injuries to top receivers Koby Howard (likely still out today), Zay Robinson (questionable) and Chase Sowell (probable), maybe Collins becomes another option. Collins wears No. 2 - the same as Robinson, who also plays offense. Two players with the same number can't play at the same time. Robinson wasn't on the field for Collins' jet sweep, but the play fooled the TV announcers and the public-address announcer. Apparently, it fooled Purdue, too.
It didn't take Franklin long to start complaining about something at Virginia Tech. As he did in suggesting that Penn State needs a longer airport runway, Franklin said this last week: "I think when you’re in places like Blacksburg, Virginia... it becomes more complicated to travel than maybe some other locations because you don’t have an international airport within 45 minutes of campus." Excuses, excuses.
Franklin's name has come up with the opening at Florida State, which fired Mike Norvell this week. With the president and athletic director who hired him at Tech already gone, expect Franklin to get antsy quickly. But given the choice, I would hire Duke head coach and former Penn State DC Manny Diaz - a Florida State alum - before Franklin. Diaz's name has also been mentioned at FSU.
n Bill O'Brien's struggles at Boston College continue. He's 13-20 in his third season (4-4 this year) and comes off a 47-2 loss at Duke last week.
n Consecutive 60-yard field goals in the last 20 seconds of the Indiana-Minnesota game, has to be a first in college football history. IU then won the game in overtime.
If the thousands of Penn State fans disguised as empty seats for Wisconsin and Purdue were any indication, expect the same for the night kickoff (7 or 7:30, TBD on Sunday) vs. Minnesota, when a 3:30 start would have been much more appealing - especially if the Nits can build some momentum with a win today.
A significant number of Penn State fans made the trip to Seattle. We'll see if they can make a difference.
n Unless Matt Campbell has determined that Alex Manske is not good enough to be the Lions' starting quarterback in 2027 and plans to seek a better alternative in the portal, which is entirely possible, he surely needs to get him at least 10 series over the next four games, five if the Nits qualify for a bowl game. After all, the Lions are 4-4, not 8-0.
Rudel can be reached at nrudel@altoonamirror.com.