Highs and Lows: Kent State

PLAYER OF THE GAME:

Amid all the drops and penalties that continue to occur in front of him, Trace McSorley just kept on producing. In about three quarters of play, McSorley accumulated 229 yards through the air and 54 yards on the ground, leading Penn State to a 63-10 win over Kent State. McSorley became Penn State’s all time leader in rushing touchdowns by a quarterback, finding the end zone three times as a rusher and throwing for two more.

PLAY OF THE GAME:

Well after the game’s outcome was decided, a pair of rookies combined to make history for the Nittany Lions. Redshirt freshman Sean Clifford hit true freshman Daniel George in stride, and George outran the Kent State defense for a 95-yard touchdown pass, the longest in Penn State history.

BEST PASS:

McSorley’s final stat line may not show it thanks to several costly penalties negating long throws, but the Penn State signal caller seemed to get his mojo back in the deep passing game against Kent State. No pass was prettier than the one McSorley floated high in the air over the middle of the field toward Brandon Polk, hitting the wideout right in stride for a 41-yard touchdown to put the Nittany Lions up 49-10.

BEST RUN:

Penn State had to wait until the game’s final moments for an explosive play on the ground. Johnathan Thomas brought a handoff up the middle and found himself in nothing but open space, picking up 69 yards before he was chased down from behind.

BEST CATCH:

If anyone on Penn State’s roster was in need of a confidence-boosting explosion, it was Thompkins. The veteran Nittany Lion wideout moved on from his drop issues from the previous two weeks with a sprawling catch on his first target of the game, securing a 40-yard heave from McSorley to put the Nittany Lions up 7-0 early.

WORST DROP:

Polk was made a co-starter at wide receiver this week after Thompkins dropped a few passes in the season’s first two games, but it was Polk who had the issue catching the ball against Kent State. Polk was set for an easy mid-range reception, but the ball bounced off his hands and into the chest of a Golden Flash defender. Luckily for the Nittany Lions, the ball fell harmlessly to the grass.

BEST SACK:

Yetur Gross-Matos didn’t have much time to work with. The Penn State defensive end was being pushed wide of the pocket by Kent State’s left tackle, and Golden Flash quarterback Woody Barrett was making his move to escape the pressure. In his short window, though, Gross-Matos was able to make his play on the quarterback, tripping Barrett up for a sack that stalled a Kent State drive into Nittany Lion territory and forced a punt.

WORST INTERCEPTION:

McSorley hit Miles Sanders right in the hands as the running back moved across the field looking to convert on a third-and-7 late in the second quarter, but the ball bounced away from Sanders and into the hands of Kent State defensive back Elvis Hines, who returned the interception to the Penn State 7-yard line to set up a field goal that made the score 21-10

BEST HIT:

As the game wound down late in the fourth quarter, Penn State linebacker Dae’Lun Darien didn’t allow the intensity level to drop on Penn State’s defense. Darien crushed backup Kent State quarterback Dustin Crum when he attempted to bring the ball up the middle, spearing him through the air and soliciting an explosion from the crowd still remaining at Beaver Stadium.

BEST EFFORT:

Kent State place kicker Colt McFadden did everything himself to help the Golden Flashes convert an early onside kick attempt. McFadden caught Penn State off guard with a kick that just barely rolled 10 yards before McFadden hopped on it himself. He managed to keep possession of the ball despite remaining on the bottom of a pile for at least 30 seconds and give the Golden Flashes a bonus possession.

BEST KICK:

The best thing about the Penn State kicking game on Saturday was that the Nittany Lions didn’t have to do it very much. Blake Gillikin was called on to punt only twice, and Jake Pinegar didn’t get a field goal attempt as the Penn State offense lit up the scoreboard to the tune of 63 points.

WORST KICK:

The Golden Flashes helped themselves in the kicking game by recovering an onside kick after their first drive of the day, but punting proved more difficult. Matthew Trickett had several bad punts to choose from, but the worst came when he fielded a high snap from his long snapper, forcing him to rush to get his punt in the air. Trickett didn’t get all of it, however, catching the ball with the side of his foot and unleashing a sidewinding kick that only went 12 yards to the Nittany Lion 31-yard line, setting up a Penn State touchdown that made the score 21-7 in the first quarter.

BEST RETURN:

Penn State was fantastic once again in the return game on Saturday, with KJ Hamler and DeAndre Thompkins both proving dangerous.. The best return of the day belonged to Hamler, though, who broke numerous tackles and avoided several more on a return at the end of the third quarter, eventually picking up 33 yards before being brought down by Kent State’s punter.

BEST DECISION:

After Kent State booted a kickoff out of bounds with about 35 seconds left in the first half, James Franklin elected to force the Golden Flash to re-kick instead of taking the ball at the 35-yard line. Franklin was rewarded for his faith in his return man, Hamler, who brought the ensuing kick back 52 yards to the Kent State 43-yard line. The Nittany Lions used that field position to find the end zone before the end of the half and go into the break with a 28-10 lead.

WORST DECISION:

After initially forcing Penn State to punt on its first drive of the game, Kent State elected to make life difficult for Gillikin by running a special teams play designed to block the punt. The Golden Flashes succeeded in rushing Gillikin, but in doing so, committed a person foul for roughing the kicker, providing Penn State with another opportunity that it used to score the game’s first touchdown.

MOST TELLING MOMENT:

Penn State’s relatively easy victory over the Golden Flashes didn’t come without concerns, primarily on defense, where Penn State’s inexperience was front-and-center. The Nittany Lions committed numerous penalties, none more costly than an offsides call on Robert Windsor. The penalty was recognized by Barrett, who took a shot down the left sideline that was hauled in for a touchdown despite good coverage by Amani Oruwariye.