Penn State Football Handing Out The Grades Following Nittany Lions’ Double Overtime Loss To Ohio State

It was a game that had everything. Mistakes, great plays, a comeback and eventual heartbreak for Penn State fans across the nation.

For every big play that Ohio State had, Penn State somehow found a way to keep it close before eventually tying the game in the final seconds. It’s safe to say Saturday night wasn’t the prettiest game, but it had all the makings of a classic as the second half went along.

Grading an up and down, ugly game can be a challenge, so here’s the best crack at how Penn State did in the losing, even though it was very nearly a winning effort.

Offense: C-

This is a tough grade to decide. Penn State’s offense did nothing for basically the entire game. Less than 100 yards of offense in the first half and no third down conversions made the Nittany Lion offense almost a non factor in a game that saw Penn State trail by 17 heading into the break.

But when the Nittany Lions needed to do something, to make something happened, they found a way. Two scoring drives in the fourth quarter would tie the game and Christian Hackenberg would look like his old self tossing for 224 yards and making throws his teammates needed him to make in crunch time.

Some of Penn State’s troubles had to do with depth issues as has been the case all season. Some issues though were self inflicted blocking mistakes, penalties and poor decisions. Because of this, no matter how many points are scored or how many chances the Nittany Lions had to steal the game it’s hard to allow big plays in the final minutes of the game make up for what was a fairly poor showing for 45 minutes. Sixteen rushing yards and two turnovers (even if one should have been overturned) doesn’t help the grade either. 

Penn State could have won, but it’s too little too late for the grade. DaeSean Hamilton’s 14 caches for 126 yards was a lone bright spot on the night. Despite 5 sacks, Penn State’s offensive line also looked fairly competent, which is a bit of a departure from its usual status as porous. 

Defense: A+

Mike Hull made 19 tackles and 1 interception in what was for him, a game for the ages. Hull anchored a defensive unit that refused to break against a Ohio State offense that had scored 50 or more points in each of its last four games. In place of the injured Ryan Kesier, safety Marcus Allen made his first start and was superb with 11 tackles an 2 pass breakups. Linebacker Brandon Bell was strong with 13 tackles and a sack while defensive end Deion Barnes made 7 tackles and 1 sack on the night.

Ohio State would finish the night with 74 yards through the air and Penn State’s two interceptions including a pick-6 were both massive moments in the game for the Nittany Lions. Penn State had a chance to win this game because of its defense and its defense nearly won the game on its own. Against a team as good as Ohio State, you couldn’t have asked more from Penn State’s defense at any juncture of the evening.

Ohio State would actually convert 7 third downs to Penn State’s 8 with each team having 18 chances.

Special Teams: D

This almost cost Penn State the game. Poor punts to the tune of 34.5 yards a punt would give Ohio State a short field drive after drive. The return unit wasn’t threatening at all and the Buckeyes always seemed to be one block from a big return. Sam Ficken made all of his kicks, including the game tying field goal. Otherwise, it was a bad night for a field position unit that played poorly in a game where field position played a huge role. Ohio State would start 11 drives with field position better than its own 25 while Penn State started inside its own 25 on 9 occasions.

The fact that Ficken made the kicks that he did is the only thing that is holding this grade up.