Daily briefing: On Penn State’s freshmen, Kansas at 3-0 and Herm Edwards

On3 imageby:Ivan Maisel09/19/22

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Ivan Maisel’s “Daily Briefing” for On3:

Freshmen making an impact for Penn State

In this age when revamping the roster is only a transfer portal away, Penn State coach James Franklin has gone old-school. The Nittany Lions’ running game has been rejuvenated thanks to two true freshmen. Nick Singleton (334 yards, 11.1 yards per carry, four touchdowns) is the only first-year player in the nation averaging 100 yards per game. Kaytron Allen, another freshman, is Penn State’s second-leading rusher (106 yards). Linebacker Abdul Carter is tied for fourth on the team with 11 tackles. And defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton got one of Penn State’s six sacks Saturday in the 41-12 rout at Auburn. The early returns on this recruiting class are promising. So are the Nittany Lions.

Kansas’ offense is super-efficient

The coolest part of the resurrection of Kansas football is how well the Jayhawks’ offense is playing all the way around the huddle. In the 48-30 victory over Houston on Saturday, quarterback Jalon Daniels completed 14 passes to 11 different receivers. For the season, wide receivers Luke Grimm and Lawrence Arnold lead the team with 10 catches each. Kansas is second in the nation in third-down conversion percentage (24-of-35, .686). The Jayhawks have scored on 19-of-20 trips in the red zone, same as No. 1 Georgia. And they scored 22 touchdowns this season before they kicked their first field goal. Those are the stats of an efficient offense. Those are the stats of 3-0 Kansas as it prepares to play 3-0 Duke. According to the Action Network, it’s the first time Kansas (-8) has been favored against an FBS opponent since 2009.

Herm Edwards is the latest in a long line

And so Herm Edwards joins the lengthy list of unsuccessful NFL coaches who came to college football and found the same level of unsuccess. Edwards, fired Sunday after Arizona State lost a payday game to Eastern Michigan 30-21, went 26-20 in five seasons dogged by NCAA troubles. In the past 25 years, Edwards, Lovie Smith, Jim Mora, Mike Sherman, Dave Wannstedt and Bill Callahan parachuted into their first college head-coaching job after resigning or being fired in the NFL. It just goes to show you – there’s only one Pete Carroll (NFL 33-31, twice fired; 97-19 at USC) And, as we all know, only one Lane Kiffin (NFL 5-15; colleges 79-42, and still going strong).