Lions take wind out of Rutgers
Win second in row after an 0-5 start
PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Penn State’s 23-7 Big Ten Conference victory over Rutgers was reminiscent of a legendary quote from incomparable artistNikki Giovanni.
The Nittany Lions were so hip in their second victory of the season Saturday even their rare errors were correct. Every fleeting moment of hope for the Scarlet Knights disappeared like a flickering flamein blustering wind.
Not even the most sophisticated analytic would recommend going for it on fourthand-13 from the Rutgers 31, which is what Penn State did onits opening possession.
And when quarterback Sean Clifford completed a 7yard pass to Jahan Dotson, Penn State turned the ball over on downs. It was a puzzling decision considering kicker Jordan Stout was
hitting field goals from beyond 45 yards in pregame warm-ups.
But a consistent 13-mph swirling wind had to be factored in.
“We weren’t even close to a field-goal range,” Penn State coach James Franklin saidwhen asked about the attempt. “We were arguably in no-man’s land. We were too close to punt and too far away to kick a field goal. The wind was the most significant factor.”
The temperature at kickoff was 44 degrees, but it felt much colder with an aggressively light rain. Winning a game on a day with those conditions requires winning the battles in the trenches.
The Nittany Lions defensive line showed itself up to the task on the Scarlet Knight’s first possession. Penn State got the ball back after P.J. Mustipher and Fred Hansard stuffed Scarlet Knights backup quarterback Johnny Langan on a fourthand-1from the Rutgers 45.
The Nittany Lions have had problems this season with first-quarter failure on fourth-down plays. In losses against Maryland, Ohio State, Nebraska and Iowa, each of those teams capitalized on the miscues to either get a lead or increase the advantage. The Scarlet Knights weren’tso fortunate.
“We wanted to establish ourselves early,” Penn State linebacker Jesse Luketa, who led the team with 10 tackles and a fumble recovery, said. “We wanted to get the ball back to our offense. We knew it was going to be a fight.... We were ready.”
The Scarlet Knights ran for a mere 83 yards against Penn State. Once a team can’t run when it needs to get yards, the passing game becomes impotent. Penn State held Rutgers to 205 yards of offense while the Nittany Lions offense had 381 total yards.
Franklin often talks about the notion of complementary football. In layman’s terms, he’s saying that when the one phase does well, as the defense did, the offense needs to step up. It happened Saturdayat SHI Stadium.
Penn State used two quarterbacks effectively on Saturday. Backup Will Levis and Clifford combined to lead the offense.
Levis scored the first touchdown of the game on a 1-yard-run. Levis didn’t attempt a pass in his several snaps, but he did rush for 65 yards on 17 carries. Clifford was 15 of 22 for 133 yards, including a 29-yard first-quarter touchdown to Parker Washington. He also ran for 21yards on eight carries.
Penn State didn’t win this game through the air, but on the ground. Devyn Ford ran for 65 yards, including a 7yard score in the second quarter, and Keyvone Lee led the way with 95 yards. Altogether the Nittany Lions rushed for 248 yards.
There were miscues like Ford fumbling in the second quarter with a little over five minutes left and the Nittany Lions up, 17-0. But the Scarlet Knights couldn’t capitalize after recovering the ball at the Penn State 36.
The lone Rutgers touchdown followed a Clifford interception in the third quarter. Starting quarterback Noah Verdal’s looped a 3yard touchdown to wide receiver Bo Melton, as the former was back-peddling and being chased out of bounds. It made the score 20-7 with 4:56
leftin he quarter.
Stout proved that he could connect on a long field goal with a 47-yarder in the third quarter. Jake Pinegar capped the scoring with a 27yard kick with 7:57 left in the fourthquarter.
Pinegar’s field goal came at the end of a critical drive for the Nittany Lions. After a Rutgers punt went out of bounds at the Penn State 2, the Nittany Lions drove 89 yards in 11 plays, eating up 4:45on the clock.
“It’s tough when you’re so close to the goal line,” Penn State offensive lineman Will Fries said. “But, we needed to handle business. That was a big drive for us.”
The famed song “Don’t stop believin’” blasted through the speakers shortly after the field goal. But the only feelings the Scarlet Knights had to hold onto were the bruises inflicted by the Nittany Lions offensive and defensive lines.
Even in a year with the uncertainty of 2020, there is a constant: Penn State beats Rutgers when they play. Saturday’s win was the 14th consecutive against the Scarlet Knights. Penn State is 28-2 inthe series against Rutgers.
Next week the Nittany Lions (2-5) take on Michigan State at Beaver Stadium.