Highs and Lows: Penn State runs past Illinois, 63-24

PLAYER OF THE GAME:

In a battle of ground games, Miles Sanders helped make the difference. He carried the ball for a career-high 200 yards and three touchdowns, including a 48-yard touchdown run at the game’s most crucial moment. He benefitted from a great showing by Penn State’s offensive line as well, averaging 9.8 yards per carry and spurring the Nittany Lions to a 63-24 win.

PLAY OF THE GAME:

When it needed one most, Sanders had Penn State’s answer. Following a great first push by the Nittany Lion offensive line, Sanders took a handoff from Trace McSorley around the right edge and made one Illini defender miss before outrunning the rest for a 48-yard score. It came after a 75-yard Illinois drive that gave the Illini their first lead of the game. Sanders helped ensure they never led again.

BEST PASS:

Approaching the line of scrimmage with a defender bearing down on him, McSorley had to make a decision fast. On third-and-12, he opted to loft a pass into the end zone for Juwan Johnson. And it was placed with perfection. Johnson was the only player with a chance to make a play on the ball, and he snagged a 16-yard touchdown throw from McSorley that put the Nittany Lions up 35-24 to begin the fourth quarter.

BEST RUN:

Sanders had his way the Illinois defense on Penn State’s second drive of the game, rushing for 48 yards on five carries. He culminated it with a 14-yard touchdown run that highlighted his power and elusiveness. First, Sanders juked out an Illini linebacker before colliding with a pair of defenders near the 2-yard line. Sanders was able to push through both of them for the game’s first points.

BEST CATCH:

KJ Hamler had let a similar pass slip through his fingertips in the first half. He didn’t miss his second chance. On the first play after Illinois’ first turnover of the game, McSorley found Hamler in the back-right corner of the end zone with what was effectively a jump-ball. Hamler beat his defender easily, snatching the 21-yard pass out of the air for a touchdown that put the Nittany Lions up 42-24.

WORST DROP:

Backed up inside their own 5-yard line, Penn State’s defense needed a turnover, and Nick Scott was in position to provide one after Cam Brown forced a fumble. Scott couldn’t quite get a handle on the football, though, and the Illini offense was able to recover. The hosts scored on the next play to cut Penn State’s lead to 21-14 midway through the second quarter.

BEST SACK:

Penn State’s defensive line was muffled all night by quick passes and effective run blocking schemes by the Illini, but Robert Windsor finally broke through late in the third quarter to force the kind of negative play the Nittany Lions value. He crunched Illini quarterback MJ Rivers for a loss of five yards just one play after an illegal block caused an injury to Tariq Castro-Fields.

WORST INTERCEPTION:

McSorley had little reason to take a risk, with his team backed up at its own 17-yard line and just 37 seconds left in the first half. He tried a force a deep pass down the left sideline to Brandon Polk into double coverage, however, and he paid for it. Delano Ware came down with the interception for the Illini, giving them the ball at their 44-yard line to set up a field goal that made the score 21-17 going into the half.

BEST HIT:

Amani Oruwariye’s hit wasn’t flashy, but it was effective. The Penn State cornerback closed in on his man and delivered a blow that forced the ball up and into the air. It was then grabbed by Jan Johnson, creating an interception that led to a Penn State touchdown in the early fourth quarter, effectively ending Illinois’ upset bid.

BEST EFFORT:

For the second week in a row, Penn State’s offense committed an early turnover through no fault of its signal caller. And, just like last Saturday, McSorley was there to clean up. After Jonathan Holland fumbled on the Nittany Lions’ first drive of the game, McSorley chased down Illinois defensive back Michael Marchese before laying down a hard hit to keep Marchese to an 11-yard return.

BEST KICK:

Thanks to a McSorley interception, Illinois kicker Chase McLaughlin was given an opportunity to redeem himself after missing a long kick early in the first half. Even after James Franklin used a timeout to ice him, McLaughlin drilled a 42-yarder to send the Illini into the locker rooms down just four points.

WORST KICK:

Jake Pinegar hadn’t had many opportunities to find a rhythm this season, with just two field goal attempts to show for three games coming into Friday. Pinegar got a third chance against the Illini, but couldn’t take advantage, pushing his kick well to the left of the upright on a 44-yard try.

BEST RETURN:

The Illini did well to limit what had been a prolific Penn State return game over the season’s first three games. DeAndre Thompkins’ first effort proved to be his best. He took a punt back 22 yards in the first quarter, giving the Nittany Lions decent field position to set up their first touchdown drive of the game.

BEST DECISION:

Lovie Smith deserves credit for his aggressiveness late in the first half. After McSorley’s interception with 28 seconds left in the second quarter, it would have been easy to stay conservative with a true freshman quarterback and be content to enter halftime down a touchdown. But Smith opted to try to move the ball, and he was rewarded with a field goal as time expired.

WORST DECISION:

With his Illini offense having plenty of success moving the ball against Penn State’s defense midway through the first quarter, Smith opted to send his kicker out for a 55-yard field goal instead of trying to pick up a first down on fourth-and-4. Illinois missed the long attempt, and a chance to counteract the Nittany Lions’ early momentum went to waste.

MOST TELLING MOMENT

If the prowess of Penn State’s offensive line hadn’t been evident with Sanders in the backfield, it certainly was with Ricky Slade taking the ball in the fourth quarter. Slade was gone the second he took McSorley’s hand-off, scampering for a 61-yard score on which he was never touched.