Stat Joust: Penn State, Purdue and Indiana (10-14-14)
Below is our “Stat Joust” comparing team and individual rankings for Penn State and its upcoming opponents: Purdue and Indiana. A few things jump out: Penn State and Purdue are, statistically, very good teams. Of course, Purdue has had a fairly soft schedule to date, but still, they clearly have some talent. Will they end the season at the top of the B1G? Who knows — but we wouldn’t bet against them on Friday night versus Penn State (of course, we wouldn’t bet for them, either, as we don’t bet.)
Another thing that jumps out is how close Indiana and Penn State are in team blocking and team service aces (OK, not so close on team service aces, but Indiana ranks second in the B1G.)
We’re looking forward to an exciting match on Friday night, and a tough one on Saturday as well. Never forget Penn State’s “Lost Weekend” in 2010, when the Nittany Lions lost to both Purdue (25-21, 25-18, 16-25, 18-25, 11-15 — the first time Purdue had defeated Penn State since 1987) and Indiana (19-25, 25-27, 25-18, 24-26 — another streak-breaker, as the Hoosiers, after 40 consecutive losses to Penn State, won for the first ever in a series that started in 1982.)
DigNittany’s North Pole Poll: It’s Cold at the Top
Here’s are DigNittany North Pole — we’re late again (in the words of our friend tjb “heads will roll!”). It’s interesting to us that Russ Rose’s early-season ranking of Penn State — typically at 6th — appears to be right where they’re settling in.
10-13-14 Poll (Coaches' Votes per 10-13-14 AVCA Poll ) Click on Images for More Information
| Rank | North Pole Poll | W | L | John Dunning's Top 10 | Lionsfan's Top 10 | Jerritt Elliott's Top 10 | Russ Rose's Top 10 | Mary Wise's Top 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 (#1= 10 pts) |  (50 pts) | 16 | 0 | | | | | |
| #2 (#2= 9 pts) |  (43 pts) | 13 | 0 | |  | | | |
| #3 (#3= 8 pts) | (41 pts) | 17 | 0 | | |  FloridaState | | |
| #4 (#4= 7 pts) | Florida State (36 pts) | 17 | 2 | Florida State | Florida State | | Florida State | Florida State |
| #5 (#5= 6 pts) | Wisc. (29 pts) | 14 | 2 | Penn State  | Wisc. | Wisc. | Wisc. | Wisc. |
| #6 (#6= 5 pts) | Colorado State (23 pts.) | 18 | 1 | Wisc. | Colorado State |  | Colorado State | Colorado State |
| #7 (#7= 4 pts) | Penn State (20 pts) | 16 | 3 | Colorado State | Penn State | Colorado State | | Penn State |
| #8 (#8= 3 pts) | (16 pts.) | 12 | 3 | | | Penn State | Penn State |  |
| #9 (#9= 2 pts) | (8 pts.) | 16 | 2 | |  | |  | |
| #10 (#10= 1 pt.) | (3 pts.) | 14 | 2 | |  | | | |