The objective is clear.
The Penn State football team has five games remaining and must win all five contests to qualify for the postseason and propel coach Joe Paterno to the all-time major college victory leader.
"I've got a lot of respect for him," said Illinois coach Ron Turner, who will coach his team in a 12:10 p.m. battle against Penn State tomorrow in Beaver Stadium . "He's one of, if not the greatest, coaches of all time. He's a class guy on the field and off it as well. That's the ultimate right there."
Penn State (2-5, 1-2 Big Ten) comes into this homecoming competition against the Fighting Illini (4-2, 1-2) after a bye week depleted by injuries against a team that was supposed to compete for the Big Ten championship.
"Illinois is a little better defensively than you would think," Paterno said. "Obviously, offensively they are outstanding. They have everybody back from last year. They run really well. They do a lot of the things that have given us trouble as far as the matchup."
Penn State, still vying to find a solidified offensive line unit after Jordan Caruso injured his knee, has not started the same blocking constituents for quarterback Rashard Casey two weeks in a row. Gus Felder will start in Caruso's place and Eric Rickenbach will handle the center duties after Matt Schmitt strained his hip.
There's more. Defensive backs Bhawoh Jue (concussion), Bruce Branch (knee) and Deryck Toles (shoulder) have not been limited in practice with their respective injuries. Furthermore, safety James Boyd's status could be in question following his arrest Wednesday for outstanding fines.
That could mean Bryant Johnson, prone to dropping passes, will play on both sides of the ball.
But Illinois offense is healthy with Kurt Kittner at the helm. The junior quarterback has completed 97 passes in 164 attempts for 1,109 yards and 12 touchdowns. And Illinois features a dynamic duo at the running back spot with Rocky Harvey (74 rushes for 441 yards and Antoineo Harris (100 attempts for 430 yards).
It is a tall order for the Lions defense, which has been struggling following the departure of nine starters from last season's team and is fired up to shut down the Illini's prolific offense.
"We're looking at it now as a five-game season," Penn State defensive end Justin Kurpeikis said. "The way it happens in the Big Ten, if we win the next five, anything is possible. I'm absolutely sick of losing, and it makes everything twice as difficult. The confidence we'd have, coming off an off week to win would do nothing but help."
