Second half. Second half. Second half.
Penn State regrouped in the second half – again — and overcame even more injuries to its offensive line to defeat Indiana here, 45-31.
After being tied 14-14 at halftime, the Nittany Lions scored 31 points in the final 16 minutes and 9 seconds to gain their sixth consecutive victory. They are now 8-2 and 6-1 in the Big Ten East division.
Penn State has outscored its opponents 215-95 in the second half in 2016.
It was Penn State’s fifth come-from-behind victory of the season.
“These kids believe in themselves,” head coach James Franklin said after the game. “It’s awesome to see.”
On the road Saturday against Indiana, Penn State trailed 24-14 late in the third quarter. The Nittany Lions, led by the passing of quarterback Trace McSorley, then went on a 31-7 tear, to come from behind for the third time in their past four games.
Penn State’s second-half points came on a 21-yard touchdown pass from McSorley to Chris Godwin, their second scoring connection of the day; TD runs of 2 and 4 yards by Saquon Barkley; a scoop-and-score TD by defensive end Torrence Brown in the game’s final seconds; and a 39-yard field goal and four PATs by Tyler Davis.
IT’S WHO THEY ARE
This is, it is becoming apparent, what Penn State does in 2016.
The Nittany Lions trailed Kent State 3-0 in the season opener. They also overcame a 10-point deficit against Minnesota, scoring 26 second-half points in an OT win in Beaver Stadium, and also came back from 12-0 and 21-7 deficits against Ohio State, ranked No. 2 at the time. Against Purdue two weeks ago, they trailed twice (14-7, 17-14) in the first half and were tied 17-17 at halftime, but outscored the Boilermakers 45-7 in the second half to win 62-24.
Against the Hoosiers, McSorley threw for 332 yards – 216 in the second half – on 16 of 30 passing, with those two TDs and a pair of picks, to pace Penn State. He was sacked three times and was sidelined briefly in the first half with an apparent ankle injury.
McSorley has three 300-yard passing games in just 10 career starts, all in 2016, already ranking him tied for fourth, with Daryll Clark, on PSU’s all-time list for 300-yard games.
Barkley, bottled up for 21 yards on 15 carries in the first half, finished with 60 yards rushing on 33 carries. That’s a far cry from the 675 yards he amassed over the previous four games. He averaged only 1.8 yards per carry against Indiana. But to head coach James Franklin, staying committed to the run made all the difference.
“We have to stick with it,’ Frakln said. “We made more plays in the second half, when it really came down to it. They were blitzing on almost every play and twisting up the front. We have a young offensive line that we weren’t doing a great job getting coordinated in there. But we didn’t panic. We stuck with the plan.”
Especially so, since Penn State played most of the game minus offensive tackle Paris Palmer, who left the game in the first quarter, and re-appeared later on the sidelines with a brace on his right knee and on crutches. Right guard Connor McGovern left the game late in the second half.
Penn State then played most of the game with five offensive linemen who, at one point in their careers, were all guards, Only center Brian Gaia, who had played the past two seasons at guard before moving to center in the offseason, was the only Penn State O-lineman in the lineup for the second-half comeback who was a starter in the 2016 season-opener.
“We were able to get our guys settled down,” Franklin said. “We lost two (offensive) linemen in this game. We were already thin at that position. We got them settled down and we were able to make some plays.”
Overall, the Nittany Lions have scored 148 points in their last three games – 62 vs. Purdue, 41 against Iowa and 45 on Saturday against the Hoosiers. That’s nearly half of the 301 they scored in 13 games in 2015 and 55% of their total output of 268 points in 13 games in 2014.
Indiana, which committed five turnovers, dropped to 5-5 with the loss. The Hoosiers were led by quarterback Richard Lagow, who was 23 of 40 for 292 yards with two TD passes. Running back Devine Redding ran for 108 yards and two TDs on 23 carries.
“Our defense played well,” Franklin said. “We didn’t capitalize on their turnovers early.”
SECOND-HALF RECAP
Indiana took its first lead of the game, 17-14, early in the third quarter, on a 47-yard field goal by Griffin Oakes following a 9-play, 52-yard drive to open the second half. The Hoosiers took a 24-14 lead later in the quarter on a 6-yard TD run by Redding.
Penn State responded by driving 70 yards in just four plays – including a 43-yard reception by Saaed Blacknall – to pull within 24-21. Godwin’s second TD catch of the day, for 21 yards, capped the drive.
Penn State opened the fourth quarter by going 74 yards in five plays and 2:04, to retake the lead 28-24 on a 4-yard run by Barkley. The key play was a flea-flicker pass of 54 yards from McSorley to DaeSean Hamilton. McSorley took a lateral from Barkley, then found Hamilton open downfield. Davis’ PAT gave Penn State the four-point margin.
Indiana retook the lead, 31-28, on a 40-yard scoring pass from Lagow to Nick Westbrook. That capped a 7-play, 75-yard scoring drive, and with the PAT by Oakes, Indiana led with 11:06 left in the game. Penn State responded with the field goal by Davis and TDs by Barkley and Brown.
FIRST-HALF SCORING
Penn State took an early 7-0 lead, after scoring on its possession of the game. The Nittany Lions took advantage of a 31-yard kickoff return by Miles Sanders to start their opening drive at their own 40. Seven plays, 60 yards and 3:32 later, McSorley scored on a 10-yard run. Davis’ PAT made it 7-0.
Penn State punter Blake Gillikin averted disaster later in the quarter, when a snap from Tyler Yazujian sailed through Gillikin’s hands. The freshman punter quickly recovered, snagged the miscue and fought off two Indiana rushers to launch a 22-yard punt.
Indiana tied it up 7-7 in the second quarter by countering with its own 60-yard drive. The Hoosiers took eight plays and 2:40 to tie it up, with a 5-yard pass from Lagow to Ricky Jones and the ensuing PAT by Oakes.
Penn State responded by talking advantage of one of Indiana’s four first-half turnovers. The Hoosiers’ Isaac James touched a punt by Gillikin and Penn State’s Christian Campbell recovered. On the next play, McSorley tossed a 6-yard TD pass to Godwin, the first of his two TDs on the day. With Davis’ PAT, Penn State led 14-7.
In turn, Indiana took advantage of McSorley’s first interception of the day – and his first since his last pass vs. Michigan, a streak of 139 passes – to tie the game 14-14 at the half. Indiana’s Rashard Fant picked off McSorley on a second-and-12 from the Penn State 31. Fant returned the interception 34 yards. Five plays, 32 yards and 65 seconds later, Redding ran 12 yards for a touchdown and Oakes made the PAT.
