Penn State’s non-conference slate is over and as many expected and predicted the Nittany Lions are 3-0 as they head into this week’s bye.

Penn State will now prepare for the grueling Big 10 conference schedule which begins with a trip to College Park, Maryland to take on the Terrapins this Friday night.

I’ll break down PSU-Maryland match-up next week, but for now let’s analyze the last three weeks and see what we’ve learned about the Nittany Lions and what questions remain.

You wouldn’t know it from some of the negativity Penn State fans are already spewing after a 3-0 start — yes, a 3-0 start — but there is a lot of positives to take away from the Nittany Lions first three games.

What has become evident about this season’s Penn State team is that its defense is going to give it a chance to win in a lot of ball games. That point was proven on just one series against Pitt last week when the Nittany Lions were able to hold the Panthers three straight times on the one-yard line, forcing them to kick a field goal, which they missed.

Penn State’s speed on all three levels of its defense is going to cause many issues for Big 10 opponents this season. So far this season, the defense is giving up just 10 points per game and 70.7 rushing yards per game.

One area that is a bit concerning to me right now is the Penn State pass rush. All offseason there was a lot of talk and excitement swirling around the Nittany Lions’ defensive front. The return of Yetur Gross-Matos and Robert Windsor along with speed rushers Shaka Toney and Shane Simmons as well as promising defensive tackles Antonio Shelton and PJ Mustipher justifiably created the hype. But other than Penn State’s game against Idaho where it had seven sacks, the Nittany Lions haven’t been able to generate much pressure. With the type of athletes Penn State has on the defensive line that will need to change moving forward. The talent and ability is there, so there is no excuse for the lack of production.

Lastly, on the defensive side of the ball I did not like what I saw against Pitt with the pass defense. Giving up 372 yards through the air to an ultra-inconsistent quarterback in Kenny Pickett is not good, although Penn State didn’t surrender a passing touchdown in the game.

I think a lot of the struggles in pass defense so far come from the lack of pressure. Moving forward, pressure from the defensive front and a more aggressive style of play from the defensive backs that hopefully creates turnovers (Penn State has only two interceptions this season) are definitely areas that need improvement.

It seems I am a bit more optimistic than most when it comes to the Penn State offense. Before I get into first-year starting quarterback Sean Clifford and the pass offense, let’s talk about the Nittany Lions rushing attack.

Right now, four players are splitting carries. Journey Brown leads the way with 21 carries for 175 yards (85 long), Devyn Ford has 12 carries for 117 yards (81 long), Noah Cain with 16 carries for 87 yards and Ricky Slade has run the ball 12 times for 23 yards.

Head coach James Franklin has stated that Penn State is still going to go with the four-player approach until one or two guys separate themselves, which in my opinion has already happened. I think true freshman Noah Cain should get the nod as the every down back with Journey Brown mixed in with Cain as a change-of pace guy. If you want to use Slade and Ford as well, give them a carry here or there or use them in the passing game, but I think Cain and Brown are the guys right now. Cain is going to get you five or six yards every carry consistently and he can wear defenses down.

Just last week, Cain led a Penn State scoring drive in the third quarter – its best of the game — with five carries for 36 yards and a reception for 13 yards, capped off by a 13-yard rushing touchdown. The Nittany Lions never went back to him after that and that was a mistake.

Now onto to the passing game. The reason Penn State was only able to come away with a 17-10 victory instead of something like a 31-10 win over Pitt was because Clifford missed some deep balls that would’ve resulted in touchdowns. I caution Nittany Lions faithful, Clifford is just a sophomore in his third career start. He has the talent to make those throws and he will as he gains confidence. His numbers are pretty good so far this season, with 781 yards, six touchdowns and zero interceptions. He’s taking care of the ball and he’s also showed the ability to be able to run if the pocket breaks down with 158 rushing yards.

Clifford has plenty of weapons in KJ Hamler, Jahan Dotson, Justin Shorter and tight end Pat Freiermuth. If Clifford continues to struggle getting the ball down the field on the road against Maryland and then with Purdue at home over the next two games then I’ll be more interested in what the critics have to say, but until then, just calm down and let the young man gain some experience.

The bottom line is that I think this is the perfect time for Penn State to have a bye week. Everything that it has struggled with is fixable and is expected with a young football team. I still think the Nittany Lions can compete for a Big 10 championship this season with the talent and depth they have on this team. We will know a little better of where they stand after their first road game at Maryland.