PENN STATE(S) ITS CASE; NITTANY LIONS LIVE UP TO ALL THE HYPE BY ROUTING ARIZONA : PENN ST. 41, ARIZONA 7.Byline: Dave Caldwell Dallas Morning News So the day fell short of sheer perfection. The marauding ma·raud v. ma·raud·ed, ma·raud·ing, ma·rauds v.intr. To rove and raid in search of plunder. v.tr. To raid or pillage for spoils. , play-busting linebacker left the game with leg cramps. The offensive line seemed to forget the snap count for a while. The head coach got stung by a bee. ``I got him before he got me,'' Joe Paterno Joseph Vincent Paterno (born December 21, 1926, in Brooklyn, New York), nicknamed JoePa, is the head coach of Pennsylvania State University's college football team, a position he has held since 1966. said, holding up a blotchy blotch n. 1. A spot or blot; a splotch. 2. A discoloration on the skin; a blemish. 3. Any of several plant diseases caused by fungi and resulting in brown or black dead areas on leaves or fruit. tr. right hand and smiling. No. 3 Penn State overwhelmed No. 4 Arizona in the Pigskin Classic The Pigskin Classic was a season-opening college football game played at Anahiem Stadium from 1990-1994, and continued from 1995-2002 at various stadiums. It was initially created as a west-coast counterpart of the Kickoff Classic and hosted by the National Association of on Saturday, 41-7, and the best part, at least to Paterno, was that there will be things to work on before those mighty Akron Zips The University of Akron's athletic teams are known as the "Zips," originally short for "Zippers," overshoes that were nationally popular in the 1920s and 1930s, and the zipper-an invention from Akron (Judson). The university's mascot is "Zippy", a kangaroo. storm into Beaver Stadium Beaver Stadium has a capacity of 107,282, making it the second largest stadium in the United States (smaller than Michigan Stadium by 219 seats), third largest stadium in North America, and the sixth largest stadium in the world. next week. ``I'm reluctant to make too much of this game,'' Paterno said, almost in a mumble 1. mumble - Said when the correct response is too complicated to enunciate, or the speaker has not thought it out. Often prefaces a longer answer, or indicates a general reluctance to get into a long discussion. . ``I just don't want to do that.'' You expected him to say that. He will be the exception. The Nittany Lions looked to 97,168 happy fans like a Sugar Bowl team Saturday. A winning Sugar Bowl team. The defense looked every bit as vicious as advertised; Arizona scored its only touchdown with 47 seconds left in the game. The offense rolled up a 34-0 halftime lead by scoring five of the first six times it had the ball. ``They beat us as bad as a team can get beat,'' Arizona coach Dick Tomey Dick Tomey (born June 20 1938, in Bloomington, Indiana) is a football coach. He is currently the head coach at San Jose State University. Early positions The DePauw University graduate and Phi Kappa Psi member held assistant coaching positions at Miami University, said. The only scary part for Penn State came when LaVar Arrington LaVar RaShad Arrington (born June 20, 1978 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) is a former professional football player. He played linebacker for six seasons in the National Football League, most recently for the New York Giants. , the dangerous junior linebacker, was helped off the field late in the third quarter after cramping cramping see cramp. up. He returned to the sideline late in the game, flashing a thumbs-up and a smile to a fan with a camera. He was asked later if he hoped Penn State had made a national statement. He smiled again. ``I hope so,'' he said. ``As a team, I don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. how good we can be, because we have so much potential,'' said Arrington, who made three tackles for losses and broke up a pass. That borders on a chesty chest·y adj. chest·i·er, chest·i·est Informal 1. Having a large or well-developed chest or bust. 2. Arrogant or proud; conceited. proclamation at everything-for-the-team Penn State, but no one can really argue with Arrington. The defense was never really the question. But now the offense - the other two-quarterback offense in this game - appears as if it can score points, and in different ways. Chafie Fields scored Penn State's first touchdown on a pass play and the second on a gorgeous reverse. The third touchdown came on a swing pass, and the fourth was on a punishing sweep. Penn State looked fast and flashy; the Lions gained 157 yards in their first nine plays. ``No change in our speed,'' Fields said. ``We tricked 'em with stuff and came up with a lot of new things.'' Tricked is a relative term. The Lions threw only 18 passes Saturday, so Paterno had not morphed into Steve Spurrier. But here was the wrinkle: Two guys threw them, and Kevin Thompson and Rashard Casey give Penn State's offense different looks. Thompson, much criticized last year, was efficient and steady. Casey, the junior with much potential, was slippery and made good decisions on the fly. To almost everyone's surprise, they split time Saturday and apparently will continue to do so. ``If we win, that's how it's going to be,'' Thompson said. ``As long as we keep scoring points and winning, I'm for it, and Casey's for it.'' ``I want to do what it takes,'' Casey said. ``Right now, this is the first step. We've got many more.'' They seem to really mean that. Paterno, 72, has been delighted with the attitude his team has. As much as he tried to downplay the margin of victory, he also said he expected the Lions to do well. He was asked late Saturday afternoon how he thought his team would bear up to the scrutiny and expectations that are sure to come its way. ``It's a mature team,'' he replied. ``I think they'll handle it.'' And then he was reeling off one of his favorite sayings: You're never as good as you think you are when you win, and you're never as bad as you think you are when you lose. Talk about hopping right back in the bunker. ``I don't think this ball game proved anything,'' he said. ``It's one game. It's one win.'' Let everyone else suggest it meant more. Paterno seemed merely to be happy to have escaped an extra game that he was not originally thrilled to play. ``Now, I think it was an act of genius,'' he said, and everyone in the room laughed along with him. CAPTION(S): 2 Photos PHOTO (1 -- color) Penn State's Chafie Fields eludes Arizona's Antonio Pierce as he sprints away for a first-quarter touchdown in the Pigskin Classic. Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press (2) Arizona's Chris Palic, from St. Francis High, has his punt blocked by Penn State's Eric Sturdifen in the second quarter. George Widman/Associated Press |
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