Oregon squared off against defensive coordinator Jim Knowles twice last season when he was at Ohio State with mixed results.
Now Knowles is at Penn State after bolting the Buckeyes for a three-year contract worth more than $9 million.
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Ducks coach Dan Lanning sees a lot of similarities between the 2024 Buckeyes and the third-ranked Nittany Lions, who meet Oregon Saturday night at 7:30 (TV-NBC) at Beaver Stadium.
“I’ve seen a lot of scheme variation, which he (Knowles) had at Ohio State,” Lanning said Monday night, “but it’s a lot of the similar scheme they carried at Ohio State.
“He always has a new wrinkle. Every week you see something new that you haven’t necessarily seen on film, that he’s able to pull from and that he thinks defends you well. That’s always going to present a good challenge.”
The Ducks rolled up 496 yards in a 32-31 victory over Ohio State last September, when Knowles was with the Buckeyes. The script flipped three months later in the Rose Bowl, where Ohio State held Oregon to 276 yards in a 41-21 rout in a College Football Playoff quarterfinal.
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With Knowles guiding the defense, Penn State has held Nevada, Florida International and Villanova to 17 points, including 14 that came in the final seconds in two games. The Lions’ first-team defense has not allowed a touchdown.
“I’ve said it before, but defensively they’re as multiple and disruptive as anybody we’ll play,” Lanning said. “They have great edge play and good play in the back end as well.”
Lanning has a superb 39-6 record in his fourth season at Oregon after serving as Georgia’s defensive coordinator from 2019-22.
He guided the Ducks to an 11-0 regular season last year and a 45-37 victory over Penn State in the Big Ten championship game before the loss to Ohio State. He’s very familiar with the Lions, their staff and their roster.
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Penn State gained 518 total yards, the most allowed by Oregon last season. The Lions rushed for 292 yards and two touchdowns and averaged 8.3 yards per carry behind Kaytron Allen’s 124 yards and Nick Singleton’s 105 yards.
“That was not a game that we played to the standard when it came to our rushing defense,” Lanning said. “There were things we could have done better schematically and things that technically we could have been a lot better at.
“So it’s certainly been a focus for us. We gotta make sure that we put our guys in a great position to have success. You’re not going to hold these guys to zero rushing yards. They’re really good.”
Lanning said that wide receivers Kyron Hudson, Trebor Pena and Devonte Ross have made an impact at Penn State after transferring there earlier this year.
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“More than anything, it’s just the speed,” he said. “They’ve made more plays on contested catches this year than they had in the past. They have the ability to stretch the field.”
Quarterback Drew Allar does not have exceptional numbers through three games. He’s completed 64.8% of his passes for 626 yards and four touchdowns with one interception.
Last year against Oregon, he was 20-for-39 for 226 yards and three TDs with two interceptions, including one in the final minutes. He also rushed for 54 yards and a score.
“The quarterback can make all the throws,” Lanning said. “He has a big arm. They have the guys who can go get it and they have a guy who can go throw it.”
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Penn State and Oregon are meeting in the regular season for the first time since 1964 when the Ducks won 22-14 at Beaver Stadium. They’ve met three times in the postseason, including two bowl games and last year’s conference title game.
“(I’m) certainly excited for this one,” Lanning said. “Penn State is an extremely talented team. They do it well in all three phases. Coach Franklin runs a great organization. They present a ton of challenges.
“(I’m) excited for that environment. It’s one that I haven’t been to before but have heard a lot about.”
