UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Coming off its grueling three-game stretch to open the season, the 3-0 Penn State football program was tasked with keeping its energy up against visiting FCS program Villanova Saturday afternoon.
Securing a comfortable 38-17 win, the results were predictably mixed to that end.
Led by a proficient afternoon from quarterback Sean Clifford, the Nittany Lions built on a two-score first-half lead with an instant touchdown to open the third quarter and never really looked back.
Reflecting on the biggest and brightest moments of Penn State's win against Villanova:
PLAYER OF THE GAME Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford put up the gaudy numbers against Villanova Saturday afternoon, but even he could acknowledge the nod for this one belongs to his teammate, receiver Parker Washington. Finishing the game with just five receptions, the Nittany Lions’ sophomore ripped off 148 yards and two touchdowns on the day including a 67-yard catch and run that came up just a few steps short of a third score.
PLAY OF THE GAME Given the uninspiring nature of Penn State’s first-half performance offensively, and the dispiriting injury to Villanova tight end Tyler Will on the opening kickoff of the second half (who suffered a concussion but had full movement upon leaving the stadium), Clifford’s broken-play touchdown completion to KeAndre Lambert-Smith was a critical turn for the Nittany Lions. Slipping behind his man as Clifford scrambled on a second-and-9 play, Lambert-Smith caught the pass along the Villanova sideline and raced past the Wildcats en route to an 83-yard touchdown.
BEST PASS Clifford’s first attempt of the game not only went the distance, connecting for a 52-yard bomb to Jahan Dotson for a touchdown, but it was also on the money. Meeting Dotson, who had easily blown past Villanova corner Christian Benford, in stride, the pair found an easy route to a 7-0 lead for the Nittany Lions with 12:59 left in the first quarter.
Postgame Show: Join T-Frank to recap Penn State-Villanova
BEST RUN For as much trouble as Penn State’s ground game had against Villanova Saturday in the first half, the open-field moves of Parker Washington were undeniable. First taking a short pass 52 yards to the house for the Nittany Lions’ second touchdown of the afternoon, Washington followed it with a weaving and winding 67-yard catch-and-run in the second quarter to set up a Jordan Stout Field goal for a 17-3 lead.
BEST CATCH Ji’Ayir Brown might have taken the category this week for his first-quarter interception off a tipped pass, but a roughing the passer personal foul on D’Von Ellies negated the effort and kept Villanova’s possession alive. In the second half, though, Brown would finally get what was rightfully his. Again finding a tipped ball from Tariq Castro-Fields heading his direction, Brown made an interception at the Lions’ 5-yard line and returned it another 16 yards.
WORST DROP Granted, the play would have been a gimme pick-six had he made the heads-up interception, but Johnny Dixon’s step-through early in the second quarter missed just one key ingredient. Unable to hold onto the ball, the South Carolina transfer missed his shot at the game-changing interception.
BEST SACK Arnold Ebiketie’s inability to get to Bo Nix last week, despite coming close a few times, was finally undone in the second half against the Wildcats. On a third-and-12 for Villanova late in the third quarter, Ebiketie raced to quarterback Daniel Smith and secured himself a 9-yard sack. The sack was his second of the season. Coziah Izzard gets a nod here as well for his first career sack in the fourth quarter.
BEST HIT Penn State linebacker Brandon Smith waited absolutely no time at all to make an indelible mark on Villabova running back Justin Covington. On a second-and-short for the Wildcats the first possession of the game, Smith met the swing pass immediately in the backfield with a wicked shot to secure a 2-yard loss on the play.
BEST DECISION The moment might have seemed insignificant, but James Franklin’s decision to go for fourth-and-1 on the Nittany Lions’ side of the field in the first quarter was a prudent one. Unable to get much going on the ground to that point early in the game, Clifford’s handoff to Noah Cain picked up the two yards needed for a first and, more important, kept the possession alive.
WORST DECISION For as well as Clifford has played this season, the Nittany Lion quarterback’s choice to take a deep shot to Cam Sullivan-Brown on second-and-10, when a wide open option was available in the flat for an easy first down, led to some consternation for James Franklin and the Penn State coaching staff. With an objective to build a sizable lead as quickly as possible to rest starters and establish depth, the foolhardy shot prolonged the need to keep starters in the game.
MOST TELLING MOMENT Running into a virtual brick wall of a Villanova defense determined to take away Penn State’s ability to run the ball early - and would remain throughout - limited to 21 yards rushing on their first nine attempts to open the game, the Nittany Lions and offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich accepted the gift the Wildcats were willing to give. Dropping back on second-and-9 from the Lions’ 48-yard line, then, Clifford hit Washington in a soft spot in the zone for an easy pitch-and-catch, letting the receiver carry the load from there for a 52-yard touchdown.
DID YOU NOTICE In his first appearance of the 2021 season, Keaton Ellis made an instant impact for the Nittany Lions’ defense making a tackle and notching a pass breakup in Villanova’s field goal scoring possession late in the first quarter…. Penn State players on the field for a kickoff return in the fourth quarter clapped when the stadium PA announcer noted that Tyler Will had left the stadium alert and moving after having suffered a concussion to open the half… Kobe King, Fatorma Mulbah, Jamari Buddin, Johnny Dixon, Tyler Rudolph, Marquis Wilson, Jaylen Reed, Tyler Elsdon, D'Von Ellies, Zuriah Fisher, Amin Vanover, and Zakee Wheatley all got playing time with the defensive reserves... Penn State's offensive line in mop-up time included from right to left, Bryce Effner, Des Holmes, Eric Wilson, Anthony Whigan, and Ola Fashanu
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