Highs and Lows: Penn State hangs on to beat No. 18 Iowa

PLAYER OF THE GAME

Iowa's offense was helpless for most of the game on Saturday, and Penn State defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos was a major reason for it. The sophomore defensive end was credited with his second-consecutive multi-sack game, but he was arguably more impactful in the running game, making nine total tackles and collecting four tackles for loss to help lead the Nittany Lions to a 30-24 win over the 18th-ranked Hawkeyes.

PLAY OF THE GAME

With the Iowa offense just three yards from a game-changing score, Nick Scott took advantage of a poor throw from Nate Stanley, who led his running back far too much, to secure his second interception in as many weeks. It helped preserve a 30-24 lead for the Nittany Lions, who held on despite another fourth quarter scare.

BEST PASS

The Trace McSorley deep shots down the field that had disappeared this season resurfaced in the form of a beautifully thrown pass to KJ Hamler. McSorley put just enough air under the ball for the speedy Hamler to run underneath it despite double coverage. Hamler made an excellent catch, and the Nittany Lions picked up a 39-yard gain.

BEST RUN

If there are any lingering concerns about McSorley’s lower body, they weren’t enough to hamper him on Penn State’s first drive of the second half. A huge hole at the line of scrimmage and a key block downfield by DeAndre Thompkins helped McSorley take a quarterback draw 51 yards for a touchdown to put the Nittany Lions up 24-17.

BEST CATCH

Surprisingly, Penn State’s wide receivers had one of the best days of the season catching the ball amid Saturday’s dismal conditions. It began with freshman Jahan Dotson, who made a nice fourth-down grab on a low pass from McSorley for a gain of 15 yards. It extended the Nittany Lions’ drive and set up a Pat Freiermuth touchdown.

WORST DROP

After Thompkins dropped a pass to force the Nittany Lions to punt on their initial drive, Blake Gillikin one-upped him. The Penn State punter couldn’t handle the snap from Kyle Vasey cleanly, dropping it before recovering. By then, though, it was too late. The Hawkeyes blocked the punt, and it rolled out of the back of the end zone to put the visitors up 2-0 early.

BEST SACK

Gross-Matos made his greatest impact stopping the run, but he got in on the pass rush as well. He destroyed an Iowa attempt to double-team him on a third-and-long in the first half, and Stanley never sensed the pressure. Gross-Matos flattened him from behind to force a Hawkeye punt.

BEST INTERCEPTION

John Reid had been playing better for weeks after a rocky start to the season, but Saturday he made his first truly explosive play. The Penn State cornerback picked off a wildly underthrown pass by Stanley and reversed fields, returning it 44 yards to the Iowa 3-yard line. The Nittany Lions scored on the next play to tie the game at 14.

WORST INTERCEPTION

In the fourth quarter, McSorley made the kind of mistake he’d been so adept at avoiding throughout his Penn State career. The Nittany Lion quarterback tried to force a pass through double coverage to Brandon Polk, but Iowa safety Geno Stone stepped in front of the pass and returned it 24 yards for a touchdown.

BEST HIT

Iowa wide receiver Dominique Dafney delivered the most powerful hit of the afternoon playing special teams. After Hamler brought a kickoff out to the Penn State 15-yard line, Dafney picked him up by the legs and drove him into the grass with authority to force the Nittany Lions to start with bad field position yet again.

BEST EFFORT

Robert Windsor never stopped pursuing. Even after having some difficulty shedding his first block, Windsor persisted, eventually finding himself in position to bring down Iowa quarterback Nate Stanley with a diving effort, forcing the Hawkeyes into third-and-long in the second quarter.

WORST KICK

Gillikin’s struggles didn’t end with the dropped punt. With the Nittany Lions needing him to help them flip their field position after another stalled first-quarter drive, Gillikin mustered only a 32-yard effort, and the Hawkeyes used that field position to score their first touchdown and grab a 12-0 lead.

BEST KICK

Penn State kicker Jake Pinegar had what was easily his best day wearing blue and white on Saturday. After connecting from 45 yards out to close out the second half, Pinegar just narrowly squeaked a kick over the crossbar from 49 yards to give the Nittany Lions their first two-score cushion of the game at 27-17. He added another 44-yarder later on in the game.

BEST RETURN

After an Iowa pick-six got the Hawkeyes within three points, Hamler set Penn State up for a response. He broke through the center of the kickoff coverage and made his way to the right sideline, forcing a couple missed tackles before he was finally knocked out of bounds at the Iowa 31 for a 67-yard return.

BEST DECISION

Kirk Ferentz showed a fake field goal look on Iowa’s first drive, but he broke it out for real the second time the Hawkeyes had the ball. Punter Colten Rastetter found defensive end Sam Brincks with a nicely placed 10-yard touchdown pass to put Iowa up two scores in the first quarter as Ferentz’s risk paid off.

WORST DECISION

Penn State had a chance to stop Iowa on fourth down at the beginning of the second quarter. Or perhaps the Hawkeyes never intended to snap the ball. We’ll never know. If they were just trying to draw the Nittany Lions offsides, they succeeded as Shareef Miller jumped too early to grant the visitors a gift of a first down.

MOST TELLING MOMENT

McSorley needed assistance to get off the field after an apparent leg injury forced him out of the game, returning only briefly in the first half for an ineffective drive while backup Tommy Stevens took the rest of the snaps. McSorley came back for good in the second half, though, leading the Nittany Lions right down the field for a score on his first drive.