Highs & Lows: Lions beat Rutgers
PLAYER OF THE GAME:
As the entire Penn State offense struggled to make much of anything happen for most of the game, true freshman tight end Pat Freiermuth wasn’t interested in falling into the trap of lethargy this game seemed to set for his teammates. Freiermuth scored Penn State’s only two touchdowns on the day, accumulating 47 yards on three total receptions as the Nittany Lions handled the Scarlet Knights, 20-7.
PLAY OF THE GAME:
With its offense struggling to make any plays in the first half, Penn State went to perhaps its most reliable receiving option in the red zone. Freiermuth hauled in a nicely lofted pass from Trace McSorley for the first touchdown of the game for either team, giving the Nittany Lions a 10-0 lead.
BEST PASS:
It was a grueling first half for the Nittany Lions through the air, but McSorley managed to find his game on Penn State’s final drive of the frame. The drive was highlighted by a beautiful downfield pass to true freshman Jahan Dotson. McSorley led Dotson perfectly, and he picked up a 35-yard chunk of real estate to set up a Nittany Lion field goal before the end of the half.
BEST RUN:
Rutgers’ Raheem Blackshear was the most productive running back on the field on Saturday, rushing for 102 yards and the only Scarlet Knight touchdown. His most explosive play came in the early fourth quarter, when he ripped off a 24-yard run, the longest of the game for either team.
BEST CATCH:
The most impressive set of hands Saturday belonged to Rutgers defensive back Isaiah Wharton, who made an excellent reaction play to intercept McSorley late in the third quarter. In one-on-one coverage against Justin Shorter, who had the size advantage, Wharton snagged the ball after Shorter tipped it, and secured the pick while falling to the ground.
WORST DROP:
Dotson made a few good plays for the Nittany Lions on Saturday, but that didn’t preclude him from participating in the drop-fest that Penn State’s season has become. With the Nittany Lions on the goal line at the end of the half, Dotson had what looked like a sure touchdown in his hands, but the ball popped out and was nearly intercepted. But Rutgers followed up with a horrific drop of its own. Quarterback Giovanni Rescigno dropped a sure touchdown in the end zone as a creative playcall went to waste.
BEST SACK:
Penn State dialed up a few blitz packages that included Micah Parsons on Saturday, and it didn’t take long for him to get to Rutgers quarterback Artur Sitkowski. He stripped the ball away as Sitkowski reached back to throw, but Shareef Miller couldn’t come up with the fumble. Miller further negated Parsons’ big play after he was flagged for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty that gave Rutgers a first down.
BEST HIT:
Sitkowski rolled out to his right on second-and-long and saw only Miller bearing down on him. Miller bowled over the Scarlet Knight signal caller to bring him down for a loss of 10 yards and force a third-and-20 in the early first quarter.
BEST EFFORT:
As Rutgers elected to go for it on fourth-and-2 in the second quarter, Penn State linebacker Koa Farmer came off the edge on a blitz. He alertly realized he wasn’t going to get to the quarterback, though, and instead launched himself in the air to deflect the pass just enough to ensure it was off target, forcing a turnover on downs.
BEST INTERCEPTION:
John Reid took advantage of a wild overthrow by Sitkowski to collect his second interception of the season, going down to his knees to get his hands under the pass just before it hit the ground.
BEST KICK:
Jake Pinegar seems to settling into a rhythm after a rocky start to his collegiate career. He was mistake-free again on Saturday, connecting on field goals of 22 and 19 yards while hitting both of his extra points.
WORST KICK:
After the Nittany Lions went up three scores with Freiermuth’s second touchdown of the day, Rafael Checa gave the Scarlet Knights the field position they needed to respond, booting the kickoff out of bounds and setting Rutgers up for a long touchdown drive at its own 35-yard line.
BEST DECISION:
Rescigno’s drop ensured the creativity went for naught, but the Rutgers coaching staff dialed up an excellent play on fourth-and-goal, faking a reverse before throwing a pass. It was a good calculated risk for a team that struggled to make anything happen offensively, but the execution faltered at the last moment.
WORST DECISION
The Nittany Lions’ discipline failed them a few times on Saturday, but the most egregious example came courtesy of Robert Windsor, who couldn’t resist giving Rutgers running back Raheem Blackshear an extra tug after he went out of bounds in the third quarter, resulting in a 15-yard penalty.
MOST TELLING MOMENT:
The depth chart didn’t provide any warning leading up to the game, but Parsons finally earned a place in the starting lineup. He made a tackle on the third play of the game to stop Blackshear short of the first down and force a punt. Regular starter Cam Brown didn’t play until the second half.