Pregame Predictor: Brotherly Love
If I were Rick Flair, I’d be letting out one of those ol' Nature Boy “woooooos” right about now, for obvious reason! Three weeks in and we stand at 3-0. Penn State shook up the mid-West competition twice and laid the wood to a blue blood from the deep south. Up next, some home cooking with a hint of Brotherly Love, as Philly's own Villanova comes roaring into town.
If you’re still in wonderment from the cloud that the White Out left us drifting in, things don’t get heated up on the hardcourt for Micah Shrewsberry and the new-look Nittany Lions for another month or so. This isn’t basketball we’re talking about, but a good old-fashioned cross-state brouhaha on the gridiron. Back-to-back cat fights in Happy Valley; tame the Tigers one week, pounce all over the Wildcats the next.
With all due respect to a perennial FCS (Division 1-AA for all us old timers) powerhouse from Philly, this one represents a chance to catch our breath. There are bigger fish to fry in the coming weeks and months. Sweet revenge and paybacks lie in wait. Trust me, it’s coming. The wobbly ship out there in Columbus that has us all foaming at the mouth? I can feel FrankLion yanking back that leash as we speak. One-and-zero is all that matters each week, as we know all too well.
Earlier in the week, Franklin made note that ‘Nova gave him the stiff arm coming out of Neshaminy High, along with PSU and all the other big names across the state. As savage as he’s been as of late, don’t expect any grudges coming out of that tunnel at high noon. Expect less Clifford and far more Ta'Quan Roberson. Less Brisker and Luketa, replaced with names we haven’t quite acquainted ourselves with yet. There have been plenty of years in our not-so-distant past when a bunch of scrappers like ‘Nova could give us a run for our money if they caught us looking ahead, but after the first three games in 2021, it’s as clear as day that this squad is on a mission. So, 1-and-0 it will be: Penn State 56, Brotherly Love 12.
