It took 17.6 seconds, covered more than 130 yards in actual distance and was just one of 151 plays on the night.
It came on second down-and-5, from his team’s own 35-yard line, with 7:54 remaining in a very painful night-time nationally-televised contest, trailing by 56 embarrassing points.
The entire play was in the form of an upside down question mark. And it supplied an answer that everyone already knew.
It began with a big loop and then drew a long slant across field. The final punctuation started with a dive from the 3-yard line – with a defender dangling from his legs – and ended with a very important point when he landed in the end zone:
Penn State junior wide receiver Allen Robinson does not give up. Ever. Witness his touchdown play against Ohio State on Saturday. Penn State head coach Bill O’Brien did.
“Allen Robinson didn’t quit,” O’Brien said after the game. “That was a look pass and I think he took it for about 80 yards for a touchdown when it was 63-7. So that’s a good example of our team. I don’t think anybody on our team quit.”
Robinson’s grab of a quick toss from backup quarterback Tyler Ferguson and subsequent run form one side of the field to the other and back again for a 65-yard touchdown was clearly the highlight of Penn State’s 63-14 loss to Ohio State. Watch it here.
And when you do watch, stop it at the 0:06 mark.
Now, count the number of Buckeyes near and in hot pursuit of Robinson, in order of closest proximity: 26, 55, 92, 88, 97, 36, 16, 51, 20, 23, 16 and 72. All 11 of them – the entire Ohio State defensive unit — are within six yards of Robinson at this juncture, and for the next second or so. Most are even closer. (Clearly, those ‘Buckers hadn’t given up, either, despite the score — a teachable moment no doubt when O’Brien shows the tape to his team.)
Only one other Nittany Lion is in the frame at this point – No. 81, freshman tight end Adam Breneman. And that’s understandable. The play was designed for Robinson, split wide right, to be on an island, in one-on-one coverage against Armani Reeves (a former PSU commit, BTW). The play was A-Rob’s to make and make alone. Breneman almost blew it, though. Seemingly coming to Robinson’s aid, Breneman pushes OSU’s Steve Miller (No. 88) from behind, which could’ve drawn a penalty, and almost into Robinson.
Almost. Robinson made Miller miss on his own. It’s what Robinson does – and did from the start of the play, when Robinson out-Reeves’d Reeves. Only we’re talking Keanu, as in “The Matrix.” As soon as he caught the ball from Ferguson – substituting for an injured Christian Hackenberg – Robinson faked left. Then faked right. Went straight. Then came back left – all in a two-yard circle. Reeves was faked out of his Armani.
As Robinson brings the play back to the left, the Buckeyes follow post haste and en masse. Think Indiana Jones in a Peruvian temple. Any Jackie Chan movie. Uma Thurman in “Kill Bill.” Or identify with Matt Damon as Bourne. Jurassic Park’s T-Rex? How’d you like to chase the Nittany Lions’ A-Rob?
Catch me if you can. They couldn’t. That’s nothing new.
In two seasons, Robinson has had 17 plays for 30 yards or more and 12 for at least 40 yards. He’s caught 17 TD passes in 19 games from three different quarterbacks on six different fields during four different quarters in four separate months. And there’s more:
And the touchdown play on Saturday may not have even been Robinson’s best, or even second-best, of the past two weeks. On the final drive of regulation against Michigan in Beaver Stadium two weeks ago, Robinson had a 14-yard reception along the Penn State sideline that required a CSI unit to determine if he was in or not. (He was.) And his 36-yard grab in the final seconds was a near-back breaker – figuratively and literally – and set up the game-tying score.
The communications major from Southfield, Mich., may have No. 8 on his jersey and be No. 1 in Hackenberg’s heart, but he’s also No. 1 in the Big Ten in receiving yardage (878, 125.4 yards per game) and receptions (55). In the nation, he ranks fifth and tenth in those categories, respectively.
And we mean respect. “The game he had against our rival was fantastic,” said Ohio State Urban Meyer in the days leading up to Saturday’s game. “He’s very talented, fast, and goes up high and gets the ball.”
Even with big-name OSU cornerback Bradley Roby draped all over him, Robinson had a 12-catch, 173-yard game on Saturday, his fifth 100-yard game in 2013, to give him seven overall – fourth in school history. His 12 receptions are a career-high, matching what he did at Indiana a few weeks ago, and just one shy of Freddie Scott’s school record.
Robinson already owns the school record for catches in a season (77, 2012) and at this pace he’ll hit 94 in 2013. Counting his three receptions for 29 yards as a freshman in 2011, Robinson now has 135 catches for 1,920 yards and 17 TDs – with a season-and-a-half to go. That’s if the true junior decides not to go pro.
But numbers and decisions sully the big picture, at least for now. Robinson’s catch-and-run on Saturday – now a Penn State instant classic, joining his pair of sideline masterpieces against Michigan – is possibly second to none.
As in 17.6 seconds to none.
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