Penn State coach Joe Paterno held his weekly press conference at Beaver Stadium on Tuesday afternoon, and much of the focus was understandably on the injuries to linebacker Michael Mauti and cornerback D'Anton Lynn sustained last Saturday in the Nittany Lions' 34-6 victory against Eastern Michigan.
The coach first confirmed that Mauti has a torn ACL and will miss the rest of the season. Expect to see Nathan Stupar, who filled in for Mauti against the Eagles, to see a fair number of Mauti's snaps moving forward.
Paterno also updated reporters on the status of Lynn, who appeared to be seriously injured after a collision against Eastern Michigan. He laid motionless on the field for several minutes before being taken off the field on a board. Paterno said the injury was not as severe as initially feared, however, and he said doctors have told him Lynn may be able to resume some football activities as soon as Thursday.
As far as getting on the field goes, Paterno could not say whether he thinks Lynn will make it or not. Expect that to be a game-time decision at best, though it seems doubtful he'll be able to go at this point.
Running back Brandon Beachum is expected to miss another game with a sprained ankle, Paterno said, though he expects offensive lineman Mike Farrell to return this week. He also said wide receiver Curtis Drake, who has seen limited action so far, is still not yet 100% but should continue to see at least 8-10 plays per game moving forward, depending upon how he feels.