Despite at one point finding themselves ahead late in the second quarter and early in the third quarter, it never felt that Penn State really had a chance to pull out a victory in Ann Arbor on Saturday. The Nittany Lions fresh off a bye week were completely dominated up front on both sides of the ball, the Wolverines' offensive and defensive lines mauling the Nittany Lions for all four quarters.
From Michigan's first drive of the game, it was evident what type of day it would be for Manny Diaz's unit. The Nittany Lions never really slowed down the Wolverines' offense, as they marched down the field, going 64 yards on 11 plays. The Nittany Lions defense wouldn't break, holding the Wolverines to a field goal but the consistent success on the ground for the Wolverines would be consistent throughout.
Combine Michigan's early success on the ground and the Nittany Lions' offense going three-and-out in their first two drives and it quickly was a 13-0 lead for Michigan after a second Jake Moody field goal and a one-yard run by running back Donovan Edwards.
The first quarter box score would offer a glimpse of what the rest of the afternoon would have to offer James Franklin's program. 126 total yards for Michigan to just nine for the Nittany Lions. 11:27 of time of possession to just 3:33. The Nittany Lions' defense couldn't get off the field while the offense couldn't sustain any sort of success for most of the game.
Penn State's offense would finally find some rare success midway through the second quarter when Sean Clifford with a fantastic RPO read would break into Michigan territory with a 62-yard run for Sean Clifford up the middle that put the Nittany Lions at the Michigan goalline.
On Michigan's ensuing drive, the defense which bent quite a bit throughout the first half came up with their biggest play of the season to date, when Chop Robinson tipped a J.J McCarthy pass, that tipped ball then would hit off defensive tackle P.J Mustipher's helmet before landing in the hands of linebacker Curtis Jacobs. Jacobs would go 47-yards untouched to give the Nittany Lions a surprising 14-13 lead.
Despite being dominated throughout the first half to that point, the Nittany Lions somehow found themselves leading. But as stated at the top, despite the lead, it never felt like Penn State would be able to win the game.
The Wolverines, as they did all day, would continue their dominance on the ground before halftime, going 60 yards on 11 plays over 4:25. The Nittany Lions' red zone defense once again would stand up to the task and force the Wolverines to a field goal. Heading into halftime, Penn State would miraculously find themselves down two with Michigan taking a 16-14 lead into halftime.
Coming out of halftime, Penn State's offense would have their best drive of the game, going 70 yards on nine plays which included a terrific pass from Sean Clifford to Harrison Wallace III for 48-yards that put the Nittany Lions deep into Michigan territory. The Nittany Lions would stall in the redzone but a Jake Pinegar 27-yard field goal would give the Nittany Lions a 17-16 lead.
That scoring drive, however, would be the last successful drive for the Nittany Lions in the game.
The Wolverines from that point on would leave no doubt who the better team was on both sides of the ball. On offense, the Wolverines didn't miss a beat coming out of halftime, continuing their dominance on the ground and this time found their big run. Former Rivals 100 prospect Donovan Edwards would break a 67-yard touchdown run just four plays into their drive to give the Wolverines a 22-17 lead before a two-point conversion extended that lead to 24-17.
One drive later for the Wolverines after a few missed opportunities from the Nittany Lions on offense would make it a 31-17 game, thanks to a Blake Corum 61-yard touchdown run. That second 60+ yard touchdown run on back-to-back plays by the Wolverines would be the proverbial dagger in the game. A Jake Moody chip shot field goal and a second touchdown from Donovan Edwards would eventually make it a 41-17 game, the ultimate final score.
The Wolverines outgained the Nittany Lions 563-268 with nearly 42 minutes of possession time to Penn State's 18 minutes. Out of those 563 yards by the Wolverines, the Wolverines had 418 rushing yards on the ground on 55 attempts, an average of 7.5 yards per attempt.
One of the more interesting developments from Saturday afternoon's game came early in the fourth quarter when Sean Clifford entered the medical tent, allowing true freshman quarterback Drew Allar to come into the game for the Nittany Lions. Clifford would never reenter the game for Penn State. The sixth-year quarterbacks' availability going forward will be worth watching as the Nittany Lions will host Minnesota next week in their annual White Out.
Going forward for Penn State:
On paper, the loss for Penn State doesn't change a ton. The Nittany Lions were perceived to be an 8-4 or 9-3 team entering the season, and after Saturday's loss to Michigan, a 9-3 season seems likely with games against Minnesota, Ohio State, Indiana, Maryland, Rutgers, and Michigan State still remaining.
That being said, a 10-2 record and New Years Six berth is still possible for the Nittany Lions. However, if they hope to do so, they'll need to show the ability to bounce back from their first loff of the season quickly. Something that the program has consistently shown not to be able to do under James Franklin.
Since 2017, the Nittany Lions have lost their next game following their first loss in four of five seasons. They'll look to get back into the win column next Saturday against the Minnesota Golden Gophers who lost their second straight on Saturday to Illinois 26-14.
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