STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) -Penn State’s bowl prospects are about as cloudy as the future of its two top juniors.
Wherever the Nittany Lions end up – with a BCS bowl still a possibility – that game could be the last in blue and white for linebacker Navorro Bowman and tailback Evan Royster.
All they did Saturday were make the big plays to help avoid an upset to Indiana on Senior Day, when stars like linebacker Sean Lee and quarterback Daryll Clark were playing for the final time at Beaver Stadium.
Will Bowman and Royster skip their senior seasons and follow them to the pros?
“I look at myself as one of the best. I want to be first round,” Bowman said after his 73-yard interception return for a touchdown helped Penn State earn a 31-20 victory over the Hoosiers (4-7, 1-6 Big Ten). The Nittany Lions (9-2, 5-2) jumped six spots Sunday in the AP Top 25 poll to No. 13.
t advisory board for an evaluation, though he already sounds like he’s leaning toward leaving.
His jersey number belies his potential – he switched this season to No. 11, the same number worn by his mentor, Penn State linebacking great LaVar Arrington.
“Hopefully I submit my name, it comes back first round,” Bowman said. “Second round, I’ll still have it in my mind, but I’m looking forward to being a first-round pick.”
Royster was less definitive about his future, though he told reporters after the game he would also seek a draft evaluation. “I really haven’t thought about it too much yet,” Royster said.
The shifty tailback known for his patience and vision is 10 yards shy of a second consecutive 1,000-yard season. But he hasn’t been quite as effective or consistent as last year, in part because the offensive line has struggled at times this season.
On Saturday, however, he churned out big chunks of important yardage to help stabilize an offense that struggled, especially in the first half.
The frustration spilled out into an exchange of words between Royster and an offensive linemen after an early botched screen pass.
“It kind of set me off,” Royster said. “In the long run, it helped us out … got us a little more fired up.”
Royster finished with 95 yards rushing and a 2-yard TD run in the fourth quarter, along with a 13-yard scoring catch at the end of the first half.
Bowman led the team with 12 tackles, but his long interception return for a touchdown in the middle of the third quarter finally turned momentum away from pesky Indiana and toward Penn State.
The Nittany Lions will likely need a four-quarter, all-around effort in the season finale next week at Michigan State, a place where the Nittany Lions have had some trouble. A win could boost Penn State’s Bowl Championship Series dreams – hopes that at first seemed shattered after the loss two weeks ago to Ohio State.
But the BCS standings last week had Penn State at No. 18, just four spots from qualifying for an at-large berth. Four teams ahead of the Nittany Lions in the BCS rankings – Southern California, Houston, Miami and Iowa – each lost this past weekend, improving Penn State’s chances of moving up.
They’ll need to beat the Spartans next week, too. If that happens, BCS bowl organizers could be salivating at the prospect of picking the Nittany Lions, a team with a large fan base that historically packs bowl venues.
If they don’t make the BCS, a New Year’s Day game like the Capitol One Bowl or Outback Bowl, both in Florida, would also be possibilities. Representatives of Florida Citrus Sports, the organization that runs the Capitol One and Champs Sports bowls in Orlando, were at Beaver Stadium on Saturday.
Those wondering if the Nittany Lions’ loss to Iowa will affect them in the bowl mix should note that records and head-to-head matchups aren’t the only factors that weigh on bowl selection committees.
Other factors like the likelihood of a team’s fans traveling, how teams historically perform at bowl games and TV ratings are also involved.
“Penn State has never lacked for national appeal,” Florida Citrus Sports scout Chuck Zegelbone said.
Indiana’s loss eliminated the Hoosiers from bowl contention.
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