Nittany Lions rally to defeat Badgers
Penn State claims its first conference title in eight years
INDIANAPOLIS — Trace McSorley threw four touchdown passes Saturday night and No. 7 Penn State stunned No. 6 Wisconsin, 38-31, rallying from a 21-point first-half deficit to claim its first conference title in eight years with the greatest comeback in Big Ten Conference title game history.
Now, the East Division champs must wait to see whether the selection committee rewards them today with one of the four coveted playoff spots.
If the committee was impressed with the turnaround, it just might give the Nittany Lions (11-2) a chance.
They trailed 28-7 with 5:15 left in the first half, but McSorley led Penn State to touchdowns on each of its next four possessions, finally taking a 35-31 lead on an 18-yard touchdown pass to Saquon Barkley with 13:41 left in the game. The Nittany Lions never trailed again.
Things looked bleak early, but McSorley repeatedly burned the nation’s No. 3 defense with long passes on a record-breaking night.
He finished 22-for-31 for 384 yards. The yardage and touchdown passes were Big Ten championship-game records. McSorley also broke the school’s single-season records for passing yards and touchdown passes.
And he wasn’t the only one to have a memorable performance. Saeed Blacknall caught six passes, two for touchdowns, and finished with a championship-game record 155 yards.
Wisconsin (10-3) played without starting quarterback Alex Hornibrook but still jumped to a 28-7 lead behind Corey Clement, who ran 21 times for 164 yards, including a 67-yard touchdown run in the first quarter.
But the Badgers’ usually stout defense allowed a season-high point total and allowed the Nittany Lions to score on each of their last six possessions.
Their final chance ended when Clement was stopped short of a first down on fourth-and-1 from the Penn State 24-yard line with 1:01 to play.