Morelli eager for second shot against Michigan
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) -- Anthony Morelli is tired of being on the sidelines against Michigan.
Two years ago, the Penn State quarterback sat on the bench and watched the Nittany Lions lose 27-25 on a last-second touchdown. Last year, he lasted midway through the third quarter until an injury forced him out of the game.
A shot at redemption comes Saturday when the 10th-ranked Nittany Lions (3-0) travel to Michigan for each team's Big Ten opener. Penn State has lost eight straight to the Wolverines, last coming out victorious in 1996. "Now it's my turn," Anthony Morelli said Wednesday. "We'll see what happens. We'll see if we can change the outcome of the past 11 years." Anthony Morelli has yet to play a full game against Michigan. Penn State hasn't beaten beat the blue-and-maize since he was 11. The senior quarterback said he hopes his experience as a second-year starter will help change things. He said he's become more patient, especially in the red zone, and that mind-set has so far paid dividends. Anthony Morelli has guided Penn State to a conference-best 94.4 percent scoring rate inside the 20-yard line. Last season, the Lions were ranked second-to-last in that category behind Northwestern. "We worked on it in the offseason. We put in some new stuff, and we've just been executing," Anthony Morelli said. Penn State has outscored its opponents 135-34 in its first three games, though Penn State's offense started slowly in each of its first three victories. Two of those wins came against lowly-ranked Florida International and Buffalo and the other was over struggling Notre Dame. Still, Anthony Morelli said the unit is better overall than last year. He already has eight touchdown passes this year after tossing 11 in all of last season. He attributed the difference to patience. Coach Joe Paterno called it confidence. "Anthony Morelli is starting to be the guy that on the sidelines has a little fire," Paterno said. "I'm not worried about Anthony Morelli. Anthony Morelli is the least of my worries."
For the rest of this article please check out www.sportingnews.com
|
