Well, the new Penn State offense is no longer just a figment of imagination around Happy Valley.
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“As soon as I caught that ball, the crowd started erupting”, Lewis said. “I didn’t even know where I was, but my teammates were on me”, Lewis said. Trying to convey decades of antagonism to players who were in preschool the last time the Nittany Lions and Panthers shared a football field is another matter.
Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi – who told ESPN earlier this week the game was “gigantic” – earned the biggest win of his coaching career and Pitt’s most important win since upsetting Notre Dame in 2013. They recovered three Penn State fumbles, which was undoubtedly a huge factor in the win.
Pitt scored on four of their first five possessions, including a 10-play, 99-yard opening drive.
So how did the Nittany Lions grade-out?
During Pitt’s third scoring drive, wide receivers went into motion before handoffs to fullbacks and running backs.
James Conner breaks loose for a run. The Panthers didn’t allow Villanova to score an offensive touchdown and yielded just 172 yards while recording six sacks but struggled on offense in a 28-7 triumph over the Wildcats. “I think that was part of their plan”.
Penn State got yet another short TD run by Barkley to cut it to 42-39 (with a two-point conversion), then forced a three and out to take control of the ball with less than five minutes to go.
The 226 rushing yards in the first half are also the most the Nittany Lions have surrendered in two quarters since at least 2004. The redshirt junior threw for a touchdown and 332 yards with the one decisive interception.
“That guy is a dog, a fighter”, Barkley said of Conner, who was declared cancer-free in May after being diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma previous year. “We can do better things on offense”.
“We wanted the run downhill”, Pitt running back James Conner said. Peterman has four touchdown passes in his last three games. In that span, the Nittany Lions were 27-9-1 against the Panthers. Pitt was stunned – “I was definitely surprised to see that he threw it up”, safety Jordan Whitehead said – but McSorley simply floated the ball too far, leading to Penn State’s fourth turnover of the game with 1:15 remaining.
“They battled back, and that’s what you want, a close game like that”, Pitt quarterback Nate Peterman said. Several former Mid Penn Conference football players now play for Penn State, including Reese’s Big 33 roommate Andrew Nelson from Hershey.
Saturday’s game has been dubbed “The Keystone Classic” and begins a four-year home-and-home series between the in-state rivals.
“That’s just an excuse”, the Pitt coach said, adding that his defensive linemen clap as a means of communication. On the ensuing kickoff, Henderson dipped and darted his way to the 10-yard line for an 84 yard return, although he was frustrated he didn’t find the end zone.
“I’ve got to put it behind me”, he said, “but I’ll never forget it”. “I was mad at myself, though”.
But, the inconsistency of the offense showed through again when, two plays later, the Panthers intercepted the ball in the end zone to end the Lions’ hopes of a win.
Pitt celebrates the win in front of the student section. On Saturday, he rebounded from two first-half fumbles and two sacks and a dropped deep ball in the fourth quarter to take a shot at the go-ahead touchdown.
Pitt kept Penn State’s defense – which dealt with a few key injuries – off-balance, ultimately piling up 341 rushing yards and only 91 passing yards.
Penn State was able to overcome the distance, as McSorley connected with Thompkins for a 34-yard pass.
Hamilton, who had a game-high eight catches for 82 yards, said after the game that the play would haunt him “forever”.
One confusing point regarded Pitt’s use of the sweeps.
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Penn State will host the Panthers in 2017 and 2019, and will return to Heinz Field in 2018.
