Morgan, Gophers deal devastating loss to Lions
MINNEAPOLIS >> Penn State wide receiver KJ Hamler said he should have come up with quarterback Sean Clifford’s last pass with 61 seconds left to play Saturday.
Linebacker Jan Johnson accepted responsibility for the defense, saying his guys shouldn’t have put the offense into such a deep hole.
And Clifford blamed himself for throwing three interceptions, including one in the end zone that Hamler swears he should have had.
Penn State’s 31-26 loss to Minnesota in a battle of unbeatens before a capacity crowd of 51,883 at TCF Bank Stadium was a total team effort.
The fourth-ranked Nittany Lions (5-1 Big Ten, 8-1) started slowly, fell behind 24-10 in the first half and were unable to recover. Their offense scored just two touchdowns on six trips inside the 20-yard line. Their defense allowed Tanner Morgan to complete 18 of 20 passes for 339 yards and three touchdowns.
Yet somehow had a chance to win it at the end.
“The emotions are raw,” Penn State coach James Franklin said in a raspy voice. “The feelings are raw. Kids are telling me they’re sorry. They have no reason to be sorry. They give their blood, sweat and tears to this university and this program.
“There are a lot of hurting guys in there, coaches and players.”
The Lions saw their dreams of an undefeated season end because the No. 17 Golden Gophers (6-0, 9-0) played almost a flawless game. They beat a top five team in Minneapolis for the first time since 1977 and are unbeaten after nine games for the first time since 1904.
“It is incredible,” said wide receiver Rashod Bateman, who caught seven passes for 203 yards and one touchdown. “I cannot even put it into words. It is just a special moment for the state of Minnesota.”
The Gophers gained the inside track to the Big Ten West title, holding a two-game lead with three to play. They became the first team from their division to beat the Lions since Northwestern in 2015.
“We started poorly,” Franklin said. “We had interceptions, blown coverages, we had missed tackles (and dropped passes). We did not play well in the first half.
“We took too long to adjust and settle all of our guys down on the road. It makes it challenging and difficult to start out a game like that against a really good team.”
Morgan ran Minnesota’s runpass option offense with precision, finding open receivers time after time against Penn State’s secondary. The Lions left Bateman alone for a 66-yard completion in the opening minutes, the first touchdown they allowed in the first quarter this season.
They missed several tackles on Chris Autman-Bell’s 21-yard touchdown on a screen pass. Tyler Johnson, who had seven catches for 104 yards, made a one-handed grab on a strike from Morgan for a 38-yard score.
With Morgan taking short drops and the Gophers often in maximum pass protection, Penn State couldn’t get near him in the first half when he passed for 240 yards.
“You can’t give up 24 points in the first half,” said Johnson, who had 11 tackles, including three for losses. “We can’t allow that to happen. It’s not fair to our offense to have them play catch up all game. I’m disappointed.”
The Penn State offense had its own issues. Clifford’s first pass was dropped by wide receiver Justin Shorter, who had another drop in the end zone in the third quarter. On his second pass, he underthrew Shorter and was intercepted by Antoine Winfield Jr.
The Lions also had a delay of game penalty and had to settle for a field goal. In the second quarter, Winfield intercepted Clifford’s pass to Hamler inside the 10.
“They did a lot of things well,” Clifford said. “They disguised coverages well. Hats off to them. They played a hell of a game. We just have to play better. I have to play better.”
He and Penn State did play better in the second half. The Lions put more pressure on Morgan and limited the Gophers to one touchdown. Clifford finished
23-for-43 for 340 yards, including
208 in the second half and a 10yard touchdown to tight end Nick Bowers.
But a Penn State drive from its
25 to the Minnesota 9 ended after three runs netted four yards and Clifford’s fourth-down pass to Hamler on a fade route was broken up in the end zone.
“We just needed to capitalize more in the red zone,” said Pat Freiermuth, who had seven catches for 101 yards. “That was unacceptable.”
Trailing 31-19, the Lions scored on a six-yard run by Journey Brown, who finished with 124 yards, with 3:49 to go. They forced Minnesota to punt and moved down the field with the help of Clifford’s 49-yard pass to Jahan Dotson to the Gophers’ 11.
On second down, Brown caught a short pass over the middle and was tackled at the 2. Instead of third-and-1 from the 2, Penn State faced second-and-24 after wide receiver Daniel George was flagged for pass interference.
Two plays later, on thirdand-24, Clifford’s pass down the middle was intercepted by Jordan Howen, who was covering Hamler, to seal it with 1:01 left.
“We can’t let this loss beat us twice,” defensive tackle Robert Windsor said. “We’re going to use it as fuel. We’re going to let our young guys know that all our goals are within reach. The season’s far from over for us.”