For Mauti, watching the tape of that game might have been worse than sitting through a root canal.
"It's something that I've taken pretty personally, and I know our defense has as well," Mauti said this week. "That's especially for the front seven . . . really, all 11 guys. That's something we've been working on and something that we're going to bring into Saturday.
"If anything, guys are just kind of very angry because we didn't present a good image of what our team is. As much talent as this team has, that wasn't our best side."
Ohio gained 499 total yards, with 301 coming in a second half that also saw the Bobcats convert on 11 of 12 third-down plays. Ohio's efficiency, coupled with zero turnovers, meant Mauti and his teammates were on the field for 88 snaps on a warm, steamy afternoon.
The Nittany Lions need to find a way to get off the field faster, which is why much emphasis this week was placed on forcing turnovers.
"It's getting our hands on the ball," Mauti said. "We've got to put our hats on the ball. We have to force plays. We have to make plays on defense. That's what it comes down to. So we've been focused and stripping the ball and things like that."
Virginia rolled up 545 yards of total offense in its season-opening, 43-19 win over Richmond. Michael Rocco, whose father, Frank, was a member of Penn State's 1982 national championship team, passed for 311 yards and a touchdown and led an offense that went turnover-free.
Senior tailback Perry Jones is a threat to catch the football out of the backfield and leads a rushing attack that gained 184 yards last week.
Penn State coach Bill O'Brien said Virginia offensive coordinator Bill Lazor, who coached under Mike Holmgren with the Seattle Seahawks, brings a pro look to the offense.
"They have good players that give you a lot of different looks and a lot of different route combinations," O'Brien said. "It's a big challenge for our defense. We've got to go down there ready to go."
In a similar way, O'Brien hopes to challenge Virginia's defense with the different formations he presents with his tight ends. The Cavaliers returned one starter from last year in the secondary, where all the starters are underclassmen.
"Our young guys are one-game tested now," Virginia coach Mike London said. "But we'll try to do some things to help them and understand the tight end formations."
Redshirt freshman tight end Kyle Carter had six catches last week, second on the team behind the nine by sophomore wide receiver Allen Robinson.
The Nittany Lions, with Matt McGloin at the controls, threw 48 times last week and had just 22 run plays. O'Brien said repeatedly this week that he needs to do a better job of play-calling and mixing the two elements.
The Lions may be without sophomore tailback Bill Belton, who suffered a left ankle injury last week. Fifth-year senior Derek Day, a former walk-on, will start in place of Belton with untested reserves Zach Zwinak and Curtis Dukes, and possibly freshman Akeel Lynch, ready to go.
O'Brien and his players want to do a better job this week in finishing drives. Penn State lost the ball twice in Ohio territory - once on a turnover and the other time on downs.
But the coach noted that quite a few players on offense were seeing extended game action for the first time. That included Robinson, Carter, tight end Matt Lehman (who scored a touchdown), wide receiver Shawney Kersey (Woodbury), and linemen Donovan Smith and Miles Diffenbach.
"You've got a bunch of guys on offense that hadn't really played a whole lot in the past," he said. "So we'll see marked improvement hopefully as the season goes on."
Penn State at Virginia
Saturday at noon, Scott Stadium, Charlottesville, Va.
TV/Radio: 6ABC; WNTP-AM (990), WNPV-AM (1440).
Coaches: Penn State, Bill O'Brien (first season, 0-1); Virginia, Mike London (third season, 13-13).
Series: Penn State leads, 4-2. The two teams last played in 2002, when the Nittany Lions captured a 35-14 victory.
Betting line: Virginia by 10.
Three Things to Watch
It will be interesting to see how the Virginia fans treat Penn State players and fans, on the road for the first time since their summer of NCAA sanctions and other bad news. How brutal will the comments get?
O'Brien wants to call more running plays, but the Nittany Lions may be without starting tailback Bill Belton (ankle). Derek Day will start, and O'Brien said his backups - Zach Zwinak and Curtis Dukes - stepped it up in practice this week.
The Virginia offense gained some confidence last week, rolling up 545 yards on FCS opponent Richmond. How will the confidence of the Penn State defense be after giving up 499 yards last week to Ohio?
Three Things You Might Not Know
After watching his team give up big yardage to Ohio, O'Brien said he has "a lot of confidence" in defensive coordinator Ted Roof but that, as head coach, he can "overrule things" if necessary on defense.
You might know that Virginia quarterback Michael Rocco's father, grandfather, and uncle all attended Penn State. But another uncle, Dave Rocco, suffered a back injury early in his Lions career and became an undergraduate assistant on Penn State's undefeated 1994 team.
Cavaliers head coach Mike London was mentioned early as a candidate for the Penn State job after Joe Paterno was fired. "Thanks to [ESPN's] Desmond Howard for throwing it out there," he said this week. "I love this place."
- Joe Juliano
Contact Joe Juliano at 215-854-4494 or jjuliano@phillynews.com, or follow on Twitter @joejulesinq. Read his blog, "Lion Eyes," at www.philly.com/sports/lioneyes
