Penn State looks to shut down USC QB Miller Moss

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. (WTAJ) — Penn State’s defense continues to terrorize opposing offenses, holding them 233 yards per game, which is second in the Big Ten. This week though, the Nittany Lions faced their toughest challenge against USC.

“It’s a very explosive offense. You know, this is an arial offense. They’ve done the ball over the last two games,” said cornerback A.J. Harris. “So, it’ll be a big test for the for the back end. And, you know, just a lot of respect for those guys and what they do and how Lincoln Riley calls up his offense. There’s not a lot of tendencies there.”

The 3-2 Trojans, led by an offensive mastermind in head coach Lincoln Riley features a much different type of offense than Penn State has faced through five games. It’s led by junior quarterback Miller Moss, who burst onto the scene with 372 yards and six touchdown passes in the Holiday Bowl last year. Now in his first season as the starting signal caller, Moss is fourth in the Big Ten with 1398 passing yards to go along with nine touchdown passes.

“He’s kind of in my mind, he’s like your typical West Coast quarterback that knows how to distribute the ball,” said head coach James Franklin. “He’s poised, he’s calm, he’s confident, he’s accurate. He understands the system. He has confidence in the system and is playing really well for them.”

A key for the Penn State defense will be getting to the quarterback, which is something the Nittany Lions have done well at the past two weeks as they have sacked the opposing quarterback nine times.

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