Survive and advance. That's the name of the game at this point in the college football season.
No. 4 Penn State Nittany Lions did just that on Saturday afternoon against Minnesota. The Nittany Lions survived a nailbiting upset bid from the Minnesota Golden Gophers to win 26-25, moving their record on the season to 10-1.
Penn State head coach James Franklin has often been criticized in his career for not being aggressive enough in the big moments. At times in his 11-year tenure with the Nittany Lions, it has proven costly for his program.
On Saturday, with his program's College Football Playoff hopes potentially on the line, Franklin showed an aggressiveness that is rarely seen from him.
With 3:47 remaining in the game and Penn State up just 26-25 on Minnesota, the Nittany Lions found themselves with 4th and 1 at their own 34-yard line.
Franklin could've opted to keep his offense on the field and attempt to pick up the lone yard, risking great field position for the Golden Gophers to take advantage of in the closing minutes.
He could've called for a punt, hoping to pin the Gophers in their own territory and force the Minnesota offense to drive a large portion of the field to get into field range.
Instead, Franklin called a fake punt.
The result was a 32-yard run from true freshman tight end Luke Reynolds. The Nittany Lions would pick up two additional first downs on the drive as they used a 12-play, 72-yard drive lasting 5:48 to seal their win. It was a championship-level drive from the Nittany Lions, who are continuing to sit pretty when it comes to the College Football Playoffs. A win next weekend against a lifeless Maryland team would officially seal the deal.
In Saturday's win over Minnesota, Drew Allar had some rough moments but when the Nittany Lions needed him the most was fantastic. He finished the day 21-for-28 for 244 yards and a touchdown. The Nittany Lions rushing attack which was kept quiet for most of the day finished with 117 yards on 33 carries and oh yeah, that Tyler Warren kid continues to be pretty good.
The likely John Mackey Award winner had another big day on Saturday with eight receptions for 102 yards on 11 targets.
Defensively, Penn State had an up-and-down day, it wasn't a great performance by any means but it was good enough for Saturday. Tom Allen's unit kept the Gophers in the win to just 281 total yards and only allowed the Gophers to drive the full length of the field for a touchdown once.
Minnesota coming off a bye week on Saturday, came out of the gates red hot. After forcing a three-and-out on Penn State's first offensive drive, the Golden Gophers quickly marched down the field to take a 7-0 lead, going 70 yards on nine plays as Marcus Majors finished the drive with a 20-yard touchdown run.
The Penn State offense would struggle to find any momentum early in Saturday's game on offense. In the first quarter, the Nittany Lions had just 35 total yards. The Gophers, on the other hand, would extend their lead to 10-0 early in the second quarter after Penn State turned the ball over on downs near midfield.
After the Gophers took the two-score lead, Penn State's offense finally began to find success with a five-play, 75-yard drive that saw wide receiver Omari Evans score a 45-yard touchdown. It was the Texas native's first touchdown since he had four receptions for 116 yards and a score against Kent State.
Four plays later, Penn State picked up their first turnover of the day as Dominic DeLuca stepped in front of a Max Brosmer pass and picked off returning it to the Minnesota 23-yard line. The Nittany Lions offense was unable to take full advantage of the turnover, however, and would have to settle for a field goal.
The final two minutes of the second quarter might just have been the most entertaining portion of the game.
After Penn State was forced to punt deep in their own territory, Minnesota's Derik LeCaptain would get his hand on a Riley Thompson punt, giving Minnesota the ball at the Nittany Lions' 21-yard line. One play later, the Gophers would claim a 17-10 lead.
Penn State trying to reclaim some momentum going into half time would quickly answer with a 75-play scoring drive in just 44 seconds and six plays. But, just about a minute after Riley Thompson had a punt blocked, the Gophers would block Ryan Barkers' extra point attempt and return it for a two-point score turning what would've been a tied game at 17-17 into a 19-16 lead for the Gophers heading into halftime.
Coming out of the break, Minnesota's offense started the second half strong, hoping to give themselves a two-score lead early. After driving into Penn State territory, the Gophers would have to settle for another field goal, extending their lead to 22-16.
In the closing minutes of the third quarter, Penn State would claim their first lead of the day on a five-play, 57-yard drive that saw Nicholas Singleton score on a 12-yard run. The junior tailback had 13 carries for 63 yards and one touchdown against the Gophers. The touchdown and this time successful extra point would give Penn State a 23-22 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
In the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, Ryan Barker would convert his second field goal of the day, this time from 32 yards, extending Penn State's lead to 26-22 with 11:46 remaining in the game.
Minnesota's offense would put together arguably their best drive of the game on the ensuing possession, driving 67 yards into the red zone but ultimately chose to kick a field goal when facing a 4th and goal from the eight-yard line to cut the Penn State lead to 26-25 with 5:58 remaining.
P.J. Fleck's lack of aggression in that moment will certainly be questioned in the hours and days following the loss for the Gophers. However, on the other sideline, James Franklin and Penn State's willingness to take immense risks with their season proverbial on the line including Franklin's fake punt decision, playing to win and not playing to, not lose was the defining factor of Saturday's game.
In a season that Penn State has shown in many areas that they're not like the program's teams of yesteryear, Franklin's bold play calling and aggressiveness late in the fourth quarter ultimately saved Penn State's playoff hopes on Saturday.
Survive and advance. That's all that matters. Penn State succeeded in that regard on Saturday in the Twin Cities. The Nittany Lions will be back on the field next Saturday for their own senior day against the Maryland Terrapins.
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