Game Recap: Lions rally late, but fall short to Minnesota
There was no storybook ending on this day. Or maybe there was, and it was just Minnesota’s turn to revel in one.
The Golden Gophers dominated Penn State’s highly ranked defense for much of the game, amassing 322 yards of first-half offense in building a double-digit lead, then they held off a late rally with an interception in the end zone, escaping with a 31-26 victory on Saturday over the visiting Nittany Lions.
Minnesota set the tone early, putting together touchdown drives of 95 and 87 yards on its first two possessions. The Gophers were able to generate big plays in the passing game seemingly at will, throwing for 339 yards. The Lions kept fighting back, but their uncharacteristically poor performance in the red zone – they twice settled for field goals and twice came up empty – proved costly. On their last drive of the game, with a chance to pull ahead for the first time, Daniel George was flagged for offensive pass interference, pushing Penn State back to the 24-yard line. Two plays later, Sean Clifford threw a low pass into the end zone that was intercepted by Jordan Howden.
“We started poorly,” James Franklin said after watching his team suffer its first loss of the season. “In the first half, we had interceptions, we had blown coverages, we had missed tackles. We did not play well in the first half. We did enough in the second half to have a chance to win the game but weren’t able to finish it in the red zone.”
Penn State outgained Minnesota, 518 yards to 460, but it wasn’t enough to overcome three interceptions.
Here’s a look at the good and the bad:
THE GOOD
• Penn State’s top two pass-catchers, K.J. Hamler and Pat Freiermuth, both had huge games, combining to make 14 catches for 220 yards. Hamler was the team’s leading receiver with 119 yards on seven receptions. Jahan Dotson had three catches for 70 yards.
• Journey Brown, who got the start, had runs of 39 and 45 yards in the first quarter and went on to finish with 124 yards on 14 carries.
• The Lions showed plenty of fight after trailing by 12 points in the fourth quarter. Franklin had warned all week that the Gophers were great at playing with a lead, using their massive offensive line to wear down opponents and earn clock-killing first downs. The Lions fell into their trap, but they still managed to put themselves in position to pull off a comeback. Said Franklin, “With all of [the problems], we still had a chance to win the game at the end.”
THE BAD
• The Lions just didn’t get the job done in the red zone. Their final drive was a microcosm. They had reached the 9-yard line and would have been at the 2 after an 8-yard reception by Brown. But the pass interference flag negated that gain and forced Clifford to throw long.
“We’ve been great in the red zone [this season],” Franklin said. “It had not been a strength of [Minnesota], but they did a good job.”
• Penn State’s pass defense, inconsistent in the team’s first eight games, finally broke down against Minnesota’s excellent wideouts. The Lions gave up a 66-yard score to Rashod Bateman on Minnesota’s first drive, and that turned out to be a harbinger. Bateman finished with seven catches for 203 yards, while Tyler Johnson had seven for 104.
Quarterback Tanner Morgan completed 18 of 20 passes for 339 yards and three touchdowns. The Gophers weren’t hindered by Penn State’s pass rush, as the Lions finished with only one sack – from linebacker Micah Parsons. And once the ball was in the air, Bateman and Johnson went up and got it.
“I think their receivers are really good. We knew that was going to be a challenging matchup the entire game,” Franklin said. “That’s who they’ve been. That’s what you saw on tape. … Their receivers made plays. [Morgan] is very comfortable in the pocket and it’s a one-man read.”
• The Lions didn’t waste any time testing Big Ten interception leader Antoine Winfield Jr., and it didn’t take long for Winfield to make an impact. His interception on Penn State’s second passing attempt of the game ended a drive that had reached midfield and set up Minnesota’s first score. Winfield intercepted Clifford again in the second quarter, setting up another Minnesota touchdown drive. The sophomore safety now has seven interceptions on the season. And then Howden came up with the game-clinching pick in the end zone on Penn State’s final offensive play.
“We lost the turnover battle,” Franklin said “Three turnovers on the road – that’s not who we’ve been. When you turn the ball over on the road against a good opponent, a top-10 opponent, it makes it very challenging to win.”
• The Lions began the game without Antonio Shelton and Parsons due to disciplinary matters. Shelton sat out the entire game, while Parsons missed the Gophers’ first possession, sitting out for what was described as a “behavior-modification” issue. The Lions haven’t had a lot of disciplinary problems during Franklin’s tenure, so having two such incidents on the eve of a crucial game was undoubtedly a big disappointment to all concerned.
LOOKING AHEAD
Do the Lions have the resilience to pick themselves up from a deflating loss? We’ll find out this coming week when Indiana visits Beaver Stadium.
The Hoosiers had Saturday off, taking a well-deserved break after winning seven of their first nine games. They are the Big Ten’s other surprise team this year. With three games to play, they are already assured of having their winningest season since 2007, when they went 7-6 with an appearance in the Insight Bowl. That 2007 season was also the last time, before this year, that they finished with a winning record. One more victory will bring the Hoosiers their first eight-win season since 1993, and two more will get them to nine wins for the first time since 1967, the year they made their first and only Rose Bowl appearance.
Indiana is second in the Big Ten in total offense with an average of 446.4 yards per game. Whop Philyor was the league’s receptions leader going into Saturday’s action with 59 catches for 813 yards. The junior wide receiver will be a major concern for the Lions after their secondary was gouged by Minnesota.
The Hoosiers suffered a big blow when quarterback Michael Penix Jr. was forced to undergo season-ending surgery to repair a collarbone injury he suffered against Northwestern on Nov. 2. But his replacement, junior Peyton Ramsey, is an experienced veteran with 19 career starts.
With games against Indiana and Ohio State up next, the Lions are still in control of their Big Ten championship destiny. If they win those games and beat Rutgers on senior day, they’ll find themselves in Indianapolis on Dec. 7, maybe with a chance to avenge Saturday’s loss to the Gophers.
“All of our goals are out there ahead of us,” Franklin said. “The first thing you’ve got to do is to give Minnesota credit. We’ve got to go back and watch this tape and get better.”
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