Offensive keys to success for Penn State against Oregon

Going into their first ranked matchup, the Nittany Lions offense are still looking to make everything click. While there have been several big plays in each of their first three games, it didn't look as if this offense was in rhythm. In fact, several of the Nittany Lions' biggest plays of the year looked anomalous in the context of the game. Rather than a product of efficient, physical play that produced points in bunches, it looked as if they used them to wake them from a stupor. Needless to say, these type of things cannot happen against the 5th ranked Oregon Ducks, who are about as efficient a team as they come in college football this season. This has to be a perfectly executed game for the Nittany Lions to get their first ranked win on the board for the season. Here's how they can pull it off.

Finish drives in the red zone

Out of all they keys to Penn State's game plan, they have to figure this one out. It's nice to have a kicker like Ryan Barker on your team, but it's not nice that he has kicked 10 field goals over your first three games. This is especially due to Oregon's strengths on both sides of the ball. They have effectively scored every time they've reached the 20-yard line and defensively, they have not yet allowed a touchdown drive this season. Meanwhile, while the Nittany Lions do have a high red zone conversion rate, that doesn't account for the long field goals Ryan Barker has had to attempt on numerous occasions. The Oregon Ducks are not a team that you want to kick field goals against, so Penn State have to be prepared to be in a touchdown scoring mood...especially on drives they are expected to finish with 7 instead of 3.

Run game must wear down Oregon front seven

Penn State offensively, do have one clear advantage over the Ducks defensively: their running game. The Nittany Lions' star backfield duo have really come to life in their last two games. After a slow start that saw them only reach 62 yards combined in the first game, both Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen have together combiend for over 440 yards over the past two weeks. The overall rushing attack now has 581 yards combined and averages just over 5.5 yards per carry. This bodes well going up against Oregon's abysmal run defense, especially on the road. Their averages on the road compared to home balloon in terms of yards allowed per carry. This is something that OC Andy Kotelnicki will be trying to tell his backs early. Dominate the run game, and Penn State could control the tempo of this game and most importantly, how it will be played. Needless to say, this may be the best path to victory offensively for the Blue and White.

Andy Kotelnicki must call perfect game offensively

Just because the run game will be paramount doesn't mean this offense won't look creative in certain phases of the game. Perhaps the slow offensive start is down to Andy Kotelnicki not wishing to waste his best tricks on inferior competition. In fact, I can guarantee that during the bye week, the Blue and Whites offensive gameplan slowly got more innovative and now, they are ready to showcase it on the field on Saturday in a raucous atmosphere. Last year, in the Big Ten championship game, Kotelnicki allowed Allar to play with more abandon than he ever has. It worked to a degree, but costly turnovers were the difference in that one. This time around, both Kotelnicki and Allar are a bit smarter and know that to win this matchup, there can be fun plays to be had, but there had better be balance as well. This falls on Kotelnicki to call a game that keeps Penn State on schedule, but to remain explosive if need be. If that happens, this could be best vs best as two fluid offenses go toe to toe in one of the biggest games of the year.

This article originally appeared on Nittany Lions Wire: Offensive keys to success for Penn State against Oregon