Nagging questions answered at Penn State

Sep 26, 2010 - 11:14 PM By GENARO C. ARMAS AP Sports Writer

STATE COLLEGE, Pa.(AP) -- Two nagging questions answered in Happy Valley, and one big tackle down and out.

Tailback Evan Royster silenced critics with a career-best outing against Temple, while Penn State's defense regained its swagger with a furious second-half performance.

Never mind that the opponent was the resurgent Owls, a team once known as a Penn State pushover. Temple at least got a morale boost after coming oh-so-close to a program-defining upset before faltering in the second half of a 22-13 loss Saturday.

Instead, a Nittany Lions squad that lacked an identity through its first three games got a huge shot of confidence going into the Big Ten opener next week at No. 17 Iowa.

Penn State moved up one spot to No. 22 in the AP Top 25 poll Sunday.

"When we play in the Big Ten, every game is going to be like this. Every game is going to be a tough game," receiver Brett Brackett said. "It was really something we can learn from that we can hang in those situations, and it's something that we can improve upon."

But just when the running game got back on track with Royster gaining 187 yards on 26 carries, the Nittany Lions team doctor confirmed Sunday that right tackle Lou Eliades' senior season is over after he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in the third quarter. The 6-foot-4 Eliades is scheduled to have surgery within two weeks.

His experience bolstered a line that has allowed just one sack of freshman quarterback Rob Bolden. They'll now have to do it without Eliades. Luckily, Royster is again churning out chunks of yardage after gaining just 110 yards on 31 carries his first three games.

Coach Joe Paterno's pep talk helped get the senior going.

"I think people got the idea that I thought he wasn't doing very well," Paterno said. "I talked to him earlier in the week and said, 'Forget about what everyone is talking about.' Just play your game and we'll see what happens."

It was Paterno's comments a month ago about Royster's weight that, in part, got the rumor mill churning. Royster bulked up in the offseason expecting to take a bigger workload and withstand the increased pounding that accompanies more carries, but JoePa had said he was worried Royster was a little too heavy, and the effect that might have on his endurance.

Linebackers coach Ron Vanderlinden told Royster two weeks ago that he thought lacked a little burst of speed. It was then, Royster told reporters Saturday, that he decided to take more weight off.

He got up to 228 in camp, and was listed at 218 by the time season started. Royster said Saturday he's now down to 212.

Whatever the reason, vintage Royster was back against Temple.

"Joe said I needed to get those extra yards," Royster said. "I came into the game thinking, 'You know, he's right. I should be getting those extra yards.' That's what I'm here for."

And it's what Royster has been doing since 2007, four seasons of consistency that have helped him get within 184 yards of the school career rushing record of 3,398 yards set by Curt Warner in 1982.

Thanks to Royster, Penn State moved the ball at will against Temple - until they got inside the 30. That's when the offense stalled and had to get bailed out by Collin Wagner, who tied a school record with five field goals.

Temple coach Al Golden doesn't subscribe to moral victories, though he does hope the Owls build on the positives from hanging so long with the Nittany Lions.

"I think we're a mentally and physically tougher team than we have been, and obviously I think we're more talented than we have been," Golden said. "I'm proud of our guys and hopefully we can build from this."

What they'll need to forget is the second-half shutout pitched by Penn State's swarming defense, which played with an emotional edge unseen since Sean Lee and Jared Odrick led the way a season ago. It didn't help Temple when top tailback Bernard Pierce left in the third quarter with an apparent right ankle injury after he scored two first-quarter touchdowns.

Royster made his presence on the ground known the whole day.

"It feels good to show that I can still play the game. I think a lot of people were thinking that I couldn't anymore," he said. "Hopefully we can keep this momentum going into next week."