Ineffective red zone offense helps doom Penn State in loss to Minnesota
The patch of grass between the 20-yard line and the end zone had brought nothing but exhilaration and relief for Penn State during the season’s biggest moments through eight games.
Against Pitt and against Michigan, that’s where the game was won, the Nittany Lions combining physicality with some good fortune on both occasions.
Saturday, the red zone, especially with Penn State on offense, was more than a weak spot — it was a nightmare in a 31-26 loss to Minnesota.
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The Nittany Lions made six trips to the red zone and came away with just 19 points — an average of 3.2 yards per trip. They turned the ball over three times, with each of those coming in Minnesota territory.
“We did enough in the second half to get back in the game, but weren’t able to finish in the red zone,” a hoarse James Franklin said postgame. “We had been great in the red zone, it had not been a strength of theirs, but they did a good job.”
When you account for another Penn State turnover just outside of the red zone, those numbers turn even uglier.
“We had big plays, explosive plays but we weren’t really able to sustain things,” Franklin said.
For Penn State, it was a vexing outlier in an area that had been a strength, especially when you consider that Minnesota’s defense entered the game as the sixth-worst red zone defense in the entire country.
The Nittany Lions came in having scored on 29 of their 31 red zone trips. They left without points twice in the fourth quarter alone.
In a six-point loss on the road against a ranked opponent, there were countless moments where a swing could have changed the outcome of the game.
After a failed two-point conversion on a third-quarter Nick Bowers touchdown, the Nittany Lions were forced to go for it on fourth and goal instead of settling for a field goal on their next drive, trailing by 12 early in the fourth quarter. Penn State couldn’t convert.
Then, with the Nittany Lions knocking on the door late and looking for a game-winning score, a questionable pass interference penalty against Daniel George pulled the Nittany Lions out of the red zone.
Sean Clifford threw an interception — his third of the game — on a desperation third-and-long try to seal Penn State’s fate, though some felt Minnesota should have been flagged for pass interference on that play.
“It’s unacceptable how we went into the red zone that many times and couldn’t score,” tight end Pat Freiermuth said.
Freiermuth was emblematic of a Penn State offense which moved the ball well, all things considered. Penn State compiled 518 yards of offense to outgain the Gophers on the game.
Freiermuth put together a massive game yardage wise, compiling 101 yards — a career high — on seven catches.
But Penn State was unable to find him in the red zone, where he’s most dangerous.
“We didn’t execute the way we usually do, and that’s not characteristic of us,” Freiermuth said. “We’ve just got to get back to the drawing board and figure it out.”
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