Rece Davis addresses Penn State's mental hurdle against Ohio State
Penn State has grown tired of being the little brother to Michigan and Ohio State. Even so, do they have enough this season to overcome what Rece Davis sees as a mental block when it comes to the Buckeyes?
Davis spoke about the Nittany Lion’s mindset heading into their Top-10 matchup in Columbus on the ‘College GameDay Podcast’ on Wednesday. He does think Penn State is starting from some kind of disadvantage considering just how many fits that Ohio State, or ranked teams like this, has given them in James Franklin’s tenure.
“The mental hurdle that Penn State has against this team? I mean James Franklin is 1-8 against Ohio State,” said Davis. “Well-documented struggles, they haven’t won a road game like this against a Top-10 team, poor record against Top-10 teams overall.”
However, Davis did then give Penn State some leeway with when and how they picked up most of those losses.
“I do think it’s fair to point out that Franklin accumulated some of those losses while building his program, which, certainly, he didn’t arrive with it being in great shape,” noted Davis. “The numbers are the numbers but, also, to be totally fair about it? You have to look back and say, ‘Okay, how many of those did you expect them to win that they didn’t?'”
Still, there have also been several moments where the Nittany Lions could have rewritten this narrative. Those are the demons that Davis is looking to see them cast out this weekend in The ‘Shoe.
“The one critique that I believe is fair is their inability to finish them, which they haven’t been able to do. Of course they did it in ’16 when they won the Big Ten,” Davis said. “But, in ’17, the year after that? Saquon (Barkley) housed the opening kickoff, they had a 15-point lead in the fourth quarter in The Horseshoe, and lost. The next year? They had a 12-point lead with eight minutes left in the game and lost.”
“2019, even though they fell behind 21-0? I think we touched on this. Will Levis got them back in the game. Got them to within four in the fourth quarter, couldn’t get over the hump. And, even last year, before JTT took over? They were up in the fourth quarter,” said Davis.
This could be the moment for Penn State to try and move up in the pecking order amongst this trio. With it being their seventh straight ranked meeting, this will be the second-highest ranking that they’ve had against Ohio State in that time.
That’s why, with all things considered, Davis sees this as the opportunity that Franklin and the Nittany Lions need to seize and the mountain that they must overcome.
“There is something to it – not just the raw record,” said Davis. “There is something to that mental hurdle of can they get over the hump against these guys? Particularly in that stadium? It’ll be a huge measuring stick.”
“If not now, when? It’s kind of like if you’re going to beat them in Columbus? This is a pretty good year to try to do it,” Davis said. “I think it’s a really big moment for Penn State and James Franklin.”