Wisconsin (3-1, 1-0) overcame a 17-point deficit and scored on a 72-yard touchdown pass with just over a minute remaining in the game to hand No. 13 Penn State (3-1, 0-1) a 24-20 defeat in the Big Ten opener on Saturday at Beaver Stadium.
Penn State jumped out to a 17-0 lead in the first half of the Homecoming game, thanks in large part to two interceptions that led to scores — a 50-yard pick-6 by freshman corner Josiah Zayas and a Daryus Dixson interception that set up a short touchdown drive. (Linebacker Tony Rojas had Penn State’s third interception in the fourth quarter)
But an anemic Nittany Lion offense and defensive lapses allowed the Badgers to climb back, as Wisconsin outscored Penn State 24-3 from the 1:18 mark of the second quarter on.
Trailing by three and facing third and 13 from the Badger 28 late in the fourth, Wisconsin quarterback Colton Joseph found tight end Jacob Harris wide open for a 72-yard touchdown pass to give the visitors their decisive first lead of the day with 1:13 left to play. Penn State drove to the Wisconsin 29 on the final possession, but quarterback Rocco Becht took a sack and threw three incompletions in the end zone to end the last-ditch attempt.
Penn State finished the day with 248 yards of offense to Wisconsin’s 355.
Becht had his worst day as a Nittany Lion, going 12-29 for 129 yards with an interception while running for 23 yards and Penn State’s only offensive touchdown. James Peoples led the ground game with 14 carries for 67 yards.
After the first loss of the Matt Campbell era, Penn State returns to action at 8 p.m. on Friday when the Nittany Lions visit Northwestern to open New Ryan Field.
HOW IT HAPPENED
1st Quarter
An exchange of punts opened the game, and Penn State started its second drive with great field position at the Wisconsin 40. The Nittany Lions drove to the 1 on the strength of two Rocco Becht completions and a pair of Quinton Martin runs. But Martin was thrown for a loss on second down and Becht’s third down pass went incomplete, leading Penn State to settle for a 21-yard Ryan Barker field goal to take the early lead.
Penn State 3, Wisconsin 0 (6:16 Q1)
After forcing Wisconsin’s second punt of the game, Penn State took over at its own 5 and got some burst from the ground game for the first time on the day with James Peoples rotating in at running back. Peoples carried four times for 24 yards, including two first down runs, but the drive stalled at the Nittany Lion 33 and Nathan Tiyce came on for his second punt of the day to close the quarte.
End 1st Quarter: Penn State 3, Wisconsin 0
2nd Quarter
Wisconsin quickly moved into Penn State territory to open the second, but on third and 2 Nittany Lion freshman cornerback Josiah Zayas made a one-handed interception of a short Colton Joseph pass and returned it 50 yards for the touchdown to extend Penn State’s lead.
Penn State 10, Wisconsin 0 (12:50 Q2)
The Nittany Lion defense came up big again on Wisconsin’s next possession. On third and 13, sophomore corner Daryus Dixson picked off a Joseph pass at the Badger 35 and returned it to the 11.
After runs by Peoples and Becht, the Nittany Lion QB kept it himself on third and 2 to punch it in from 3 yards out and give Penn State a three-score lead.
Penn State 17, Wisconsin 0 (10:29 Q2)
After a Wisconsin three and out, Becht connected with Chase Sowell for a 17-yard gain, but the Nittany Lions got off track with a second down sack and punted it back to the Badgers.
Wisconsin’s offense, meanwhile, got rolling late in the half. Abu Sama II broke off a 17-yard run on third and long and Joseph converted a fourth and 1 at the Penn State 35 on a keeper. Joseph then connected with Jacob Harris on a 22-yard gain to the 11, and two plays later the Badger QB took it in from 7 yards out to get the Badgers on the board.
Penn State 17, Wisconsin 7 (1:18 Q2)
The Nittany Lion offense picked up 9 on a pair of Peoples carries as the quarter wound down, and on fourth and 1 from the Penn State 33, Wisconsin declined to take a timeout and let the half run out rather than force the punt.
Despite the defensive dominance by the Nittany Lions until late in the half, the two teams were evenly matched in offensive yardage through 30 minutes, with Penn State gaining 126 to Wisconsin’s 124.
End 2nd quarter: Penn State 17, Wisconsin 7
3rd Quarter
Wisconsin punted to end its opening drive of the third quarter, but on Penn State’s first play of the ensuing possession, Becht’s pass was deflected and picked off by Charles Perkins at the 22 to give the Badgers the ball right back. It was Becht’s first interception of the season.
The Nittany Lion defense held strong, though, and Wisconsin settled for a 34-yard Gavin Lahm field goal to narrow the gap.
Penn State 17, Wisconsin 10 (10:53 Q3)
Becht converted a third down on an 18-yard pass to Sowell and another on a 19-yard scramble as Penn State moved inside the Badger 25 on its next possession. The Nittany Lions, though, fell behind the chains with a 5-yard loss on first down and ultimately couldn’t keep the drive moving. Barker made his second field goal of the day, this time from 37 yards, to cap the 13-play, 56-yard drive and move the lead back to double digits.
Penn State 20, Wisconsin 10 (3:53 Q3)
Wisconsin went three and out on its next possession, and Penn State faced fourth and 1 from its own 38 as the third quarter ended.
End 3rd quarter: Penn State 20, Wisconsin 10
4th Quarter
After Penn State punted to start the final quarter, Wisconsin moved to midfield, but the Nittany Lion defense clamped down and forced the Badgers to kick it back.
The Nittany Lions returned the favor with a three and out. On Wisconsin’s first play from its own 44, Penn State linebacker Tony Rojas came up with the Nittany Lions’ third interception of the day, picking off a Joseph pass at the PSU 45.
Penn State did nothing with the turnover, and after two incompletions sandwiching a 1-yard Becht loss, punted it away.
The Badger offense marched down field, going 75 yards in 10 plays capped by an 11-yard touchdown throw from Joseph to Eugene Hilton Jr. to pull Wisconsin within three with 3:31 remaining.
Penn State 20, Wisconsin 17 (3:31 Q3)
The Penn State offense again did nothing, with a short run and two incompletions forcing the Nittany Lions to punt with just over two minutes left in the game.
With Wisconsin facing second and 19 from its own 6 after a false start and a holding penalty, Badger running back Darrion Dupree pulled in a screen pass and broke free for a 25-yard gain to the 31 heading into the two-minute warning.
Facing third and 13 from the Badger 28, Joseph found Harris wide open for a 72-yard touchdown pass to give Wisconsin its first lead of the day with 1:13 remaining.
Wisconsin 24, Penn State 20 (1:13 Q4)
Penn State drove to the Wisconsin 29 on the final possession, but Becht took a sack and threw three incompletions in the end zone to end the game.
Final: Wisconsin 24, Penn State 20
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