Handing Out The Grades Following Penn State’s 31-30 Pinstripe Bowl Victory Over Boston College

BRONX, N.Y. –Penn State football hasn’t played fantastic looking football for much of this season, but in a game that could help define an up and down year the Nittany Lions put it all together.

Like much of the season, there were good and bad moments on Saturday night, but Penn State made the plays it had to in order to win.

As a result the Nittany Lions are Pinstripe Bowl champs and 7-6 to finish the 2014 season.

In every game there are areas to improve on and areas to be proud of. So for one final time this year, here are the grades following Penn State’s latest outing, a thrilling 31-30 victory over Boston College.

Offense: A-

With over 170 yards of offense in the first quarter, 31 points and three receivers catching 7 passes it’s hard to find fault with the Nittany Lions on this side of the ball. The negative though, two fumbles on botched snap exchanges and a 20 yard offensive output in the entire second quarter.

Penn State fans were reminded of what Christian Hackenberg can do with a 34-50, 371 yard and 4 TD performance that looked as good as any game he has played as a Nittany Lion. The offensive line gave him time to pass and for the most part he made the throws. Four big drops hurts this grade and a fairly pedestrian rushing attack didn’t do much to balance out the offensive output.

Despite the team not running the ball well for the game, Akeel Lynch unleashed a major 35 yard run and had 77 yards on 17 carries for a solid outing. Chris Godwin had 140 yards receiving and a 72 yard touchdown reception was one of a few impressive moments for an offense that has struggled this season more often than not. The Nittany Lion youth movement delivered an official statement at Yankee Stadium.

Penn State wasn’t perfect, but all things considered the Nittany Lions made the plays they haven’t always made this year. So for that they get close to what has been an elusive A grade. Hackenberg getting sacked only twice all evening was a notable change of narrative as well.

Defense: C+

This game wasn’t Penn State’s best by its usual defensive standards but much like the offense Mike Hull and his crew made big plays at big moments. Boston College picked up 305 yards on the ground and with several runs in the 20-50 yard range it was the most any success any team had running the ball against Penn State this season.

Despite the occasional struggles there were a few bright spots to note. Linebacker Nyeem Wartman seemed to take up the mantle as the next linebacker to watch at Penn State with an 11 tackle effort to lead the team. Adrian Amos also made the most of his time on the field with 7 tackles while Jordan Lucas picked up 7 stops and Penn State’s only sack. 

Boston College’s 5-of-16 mark on third down was solid by Penn State standards but scoring 30 points against the Nittany Lions is unusual. So while they made big plays when they needed to, it’s hard to give the unit a glowing grade simply because of the stats Boston College was able to put up. It wasn’t par for the course for this unit and that means the grade can’t be either.

Mike Hull once said that the offense would have to bail out the defense at some point. And that point came last night.

Special Teams: B-

At this point there isn’t much more you can say about Sam Ficken. A 45-yarder to tie the game and an extra point to win it finished off his career in storybook fashion. Penn State punted 6 times for a 34.5 yard average but also punted into a few short fields as well which impacts that average more than simply punting it poorly. The kick return unit has yet to be a threat this season which hurts the grade in a game where field position played a role. Penn State gave up a 75 yard return but otherwise held Boston College in check even if it was by a shoestring at times.

Von Walker led Penn State with a 26 yard return but that’s about the only other positive other than Sam Ficken being Sam Ficken.

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