UPSET! Penn State topples No. 2 Ohio State 24-21

The white out in the stands became the white out on the field as Penn State fans mobbed their Nittany Lions. Well after the biggest victory of the post-Joe Paterno era was over, the cries of "We Are! Penn State!" echoed underneath 56-year-old Beaver Stadium and bounced off its big rusty metal beams.

It felt like the good ol' days for Penn State football and Happy Valley was downright ecstatic Saturday night after the Nittany Lions upset No. 2 Ohio State 24-21.

"Obviously these types of wins are important," coach James Franklin said. "To be honest with you, I don't want to spend a lot of time thinking about the big picture right now, I just want to soak this all in. I just want to enjoy tonight."

Grant Haley returned a blocked field goal 60 yards for a touchdown with 4:27 left in the fourth quarter and the Nittany Lions sacked J.T. Barrett twice on Ohio State's final possession to seal a milestone victory for Penn State:

- First against Ohio State since 2011.

- First over a ranked team under Franklin.

- First against a top-five team since 1999 against Arizona.

- First against a top-two team since 1990 against No. 1 Notre Dame.

- First in Beaver Stadium against a team ranked so high since 1982 against No. 2 Nebraska.

Penn State (5-2, 3-1 Big Ten) took its first lead against the Buckeyes when Marcus Allen leaped high to blockTyler Durbin's 45-yard field goal attempt and Haley made the scoop and sprint to the end zone.

"It's something you dream about as a kid," Haley said. "Just running to the end zone and falling, it was a huge sigh of relief, like, everything, all the hard work this team's put in coming into play against the No. 2 team in the country."

The crowd of 107,280 at Beaver Stadium, almost all dressed in white, went nuts after Penn State took the lead, and then thousands poured out onto the field when the clock hit 0:00.

The Buckeyes (6-1, 4-1 Big Ten) had their 20-game road winning streak snapped and the Big Ten East race that looked like an inevitable march toward an Ohio State-Michigan showdown on Nov. 26 in Columbus, Ohio, took a bit of a detour. Two seasons ago the Buckeyes bounced back from an early loss and won the national championship. Last season one loss turned out to be enough to eliminate Ohio State from the College Football Playoff.

"Feel the same as Michigan State last year," Ohio State defensive end Sam Hubbard said.

The Buckeyes are in much better position to recover.

Penn State is now in the mix, but the Wolverines and Buckeyes still have the advantage in the division. If they all finish 8-1 in the conference and the Buckeyes beat Michigan, Penn State - which has already lost to the Wolverines - would be eliminated from three-way tiebreaker because of a worse overall record.

The Nittany Lions will worry about that later.

"This isn't a fluke win," linebacker Jason Cabinda said. "This is who we are. This is who we believe we can be and will continue to be."

THE TAKEAWAY

Ohio State: The Buckeyes became the highest ranked team to lose to an unranked team this season. Problems with the passing game left them unable to put Penn State away. Barrett was 28 for 43 for 245 yards and he was sacked six times as the Buckeyes, especially right tackle Isaiah Prince, struggled to protect their quarterback.

"I think we put our O-line in bad spots early on in drives, so we're in second and long and then we had to pass and that harmed us," Barrett said.

Penn State: The Nittany Lions got Cabinda and fellow linebacker Brandon Bell back from injury, and the defense played it best game of the season. Bell (19 tackles) and Cabinda (12 tackles) were all over the field and defensive end Garrett Sickels had 2.5 sacks.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

Ohio State: How far will the Buckeyes fall? At least behind most of the unbeaten teams and maybe behind Louisville. Figure somewhere around No. 7 or 8.

Penn State: The Nittany Lions have not been ranked since 2011, but that could change on Sunday.

UP NEXT

Ohio State: The Buckeyes return home after two straight road games to face Northwestern, which is on a three-game winning streak.

Penn State: The Nittany Lions visit Purdue. Penn State has won seven straight meetings.

Barkley, McSorley help Penn St. beat Maryland 38-14

Penn State coach James Franklin said this week that the Nittany Lions needed to show opponents the ability to win games solely by the pass if the ground game goes awry; with 372 yards rushing against Maryland on Saturday, it's a theory they didn't need to prove.

Saquan Barkley ran for 202 yards, quarterback Trace McSorley added 81 more and threw a pair of touchdown passes to lead Penn State over Maryland 38-14 in front of a homecoming crowd of 100,778.

McSorley accounted for 233 total yards, throwing for 152, as the Nittany Lions (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten) had a season-high 524 total yards and snapped Maryland's five game win streak.

"It's simple," Franklin said. "It's upfront. If you're good up front across the offensive line and the defensive line, you have a chance to be successful."

Penn State has gotten off to slow starts in each of its games this season. The Nittany Lions shook that off with a seven-play, 84-yard touchdown drive on its opening possession that featured four plays of 17 yards or more and capped by a 5-yard scoring pass from McSorley to tight end Mike Gesicki.

"It was huge for us to get that first touchdown," said McSorley. "We were able to get Beaver Stadium rocking."

Barkley averaged 6.5 yards on 31 carries.

"I didn't do anything spectacular today," Barkley said. "The offensive line took over and did a good job. We kind of felt we could run the ball; we hadn't been getting our running game going. The offensive line did an outstanding job. I saw that we had 300 some yards and I told them (linemen), `it's all you.'

"We got off to a fast start today," Barkley added. "We've been able to put 30 points on the board but we haven't started on fire."

Penn State had four sacks and limited Maryland (4-1, 1-1) to 270 total yards, including 170 on the ground. The Terps came in averaging 300 yards rushing per game in victories over Howard, Florida International, Central Florida and Purdue. Lorenzo Harrison led the Terps with 76 yards rushing.

Maryland was forced to play without veteran quarterback Perry Hills during the second half; Hills injured his shoulder on a second-quarter keeper deep in Penn State territory and Maryland coach D.J. Durkin said it was not in Hills' best interest to return in the second half.

"We have to play better, we have to coach better," Durkin said. "We made dumb mistakes. We have to stay within the scheme of our offense."

Maryland closed to within 17-14 late in the first half when Tyrrell Pigrome, subbing for the injured Hills, scored on his first snap with a 7-yard run. But Barkley peeled off a 25-yard run and one play later a 45-yard scoring jaunt to put the Lions up by 10 at the half.

"It's really indescribable how we played that next series on defense," Durkin said. We didn't call it well, we didn't execute it well; I can't even begin to describe it."

Penn State penalties and a Barkley fumble enabled the Terps to stay within striking distance until McSorley hooked up with DeAndre Thompkins on a 70-yard scoring pass late in the third quarter to make it 31-14.

"Offensively, we put up some good numbers and did some good things, "Penn State's Franklin said. "I thought we matched up well against this team on the O-line and the D-line. The games that we've matched up well, we've had success."

KEY INJURIES: Tackle Andrew Nelson, arguably Penn State's top lineman, injured his right knee late in the first half and likely will be lost for the season, Franklin said. Penn State freshman punter Blake Gillikin was injured when Maryland blocked a first-half punt and did not return.

TARGETING A KICKER: Penn State kicker Joey Julius made jarring tackles against Kent State and Michigan this season and as a result has drawn blocking interest on kickoffs. He was the victim of a late hit against Minnesota and the Gophers' Jaylen Waters was ejected. Saturday, Julius was knocked down late by Maryland's Isaiah Davis after his second-half kickoff had sailed out of bounds and Davis was ejected. "If he (Davis) wasn't thrown out of the game, he would have been removed by me," Durkin said. "That is not us. We had momentum to start the half and that swung it the other way." Julius, who weighs 260 pounds, revealed on Facebook last week that he underwent treatment over the summer in a St. Louis facility for an eating disorder.

UP NEXT

MARYLAND: After playing three of its first five games on the road, Maryland returns home to face Minnesota on Oct. 15.

PENN STATE: The Nittany Lions have an open date Oct. 15 prior to playing their third straight home game on Oct. 22 against No. 2 Ohio State; the Buckeyes will be Penn State's second top-five opponent this season.

Barkley's run lifts Penn State over Minnesota 29-26 in OT

Saquon Barkley scored on a 25-yard run on Penn State's first offensive play of overtime and the Nittany Lions beat Minnesota 29-26 on Saturday night.

Barkley finished with 63 yards on 20 carries for Penn State (3-2, 1-1 Big Ten) and Trace McSorley completed 19 of 40 passes for 335 yards and a touchdown. McSorley added 73 rushing yards and another score for the Nittany Lions, who battled back from a 13-3 halftime deficit to salvage momentum in a season already soured by injuries.

"I think it was definitely something our players needed," Penn State coach James Franklin said. "Everyone needed it, there's no doubt about it."

Mitch Leidner completed 24 of 40 passes for 241 yards with a touchdown, and Rodney Smith and Shannon Brooks added 104 and 100 rushing yards, respectively, for Minnesota (3-1, 0-1 Big Ten). Brooks and Drew Wolitarsky scored touchdowns for the Gophers and Irvin Charles hauled in an 80-yard score for Penn State.

Emmit Carpenter kicked four field goals for Minnesota, including a go-ahead 37-yarder with 54 seconds to go. But Tyler Davis' third field goal, a 40-yarder with two seconds left, forced overtime. Carpenter's 46-yarder put Minnesota up after the first half of overtime before Barkley ended it on the next play.

Penn State's star running back was bottled up for much of the afternoon and was forced to the sideline when it appeared he was hurt in the first half. Barkley averaged just two yards per carry before his game-sealing run.

"I'm really proud of Saqoun because he's handled adversity and you never see bad body language from him," Franklin said. "Never."

Safety Marcus Allen made 22 tackles for Penn State.

THE TAKEAWAY

MINNESOTA: The Gophers are a scrappy bunch and will have a shot to hang with a lot of Big Ten teams with Leidner and their running backs playing well.

Leidner bounced back from a shaky start where he was 0 for 4 against the blitz to complete his next five passes for 35 yards and a touchdown against extra-man pressures.

PENN STATE: After falling into a 13-3 halftime hole and going 0 for 7 on third downs over the first two quarters, Penn State salvaged some momentum with a win. More importantly, Joe Moorhead and the offense got on track with big plays in the third quarter where Penn State racked up 190 yards of offense with 156 of them coming on deep passes against Minnesota's shorthanded secondary.

UP NEXT

MINNESOTA: Will try to take the Floyd of Rosedale back from the Iowa Hawkeyes at TCF Bank Stadium on Oct. 8.

PENN STATE: Hosts Maryland on Oct. 8 in what's become arguably each team's biggest rivalry.

No. 4 Michigan gets 6 rushing TDs in 49-10 rout of Penn St

De'Veon Smith led an overwhelming ground game with 107 yards rushing and a touchdown and Karan Higdon ran for two scores and No. 4 Michigan routed Penn State 49-10 on Saturday in both teams' Big Ten opener.

The Wolverines scored six touchdowns on the ground as they finished with 326 yards rushing. Wilton Speight threw one touchdown pass.

"I was really impressed by all of our running backs," coach Jim Harbaugh said. "We were moving the chains and breaking off big runs. That's an efficient way to great way to move the ball, and our entire offense was very effective with it today."

Michigan (4-0) dominated both sides of the ball. Penn State (2-2) has lost three straight to the Wolverines.

"Give Michigan credit, that's a good, mature football team," Penn State coach James Franklin said. "They are one of the oldest teams in the country, and they are ranked No. 4 for a reason."

Jabrill Peppers gave the fans an early thrill by returning Penn State's first punt to the 9, although a bench-interference penalty moved the ball to the Nittany Lions 24. Seven plays later, Khalid Hill dove in on 4th-and-goal from the 1.

"It's cool that Coach trusts us to jam the ball in that situation," Speight said. "Every guy on the offense wanted to go for it on that fourth down, and it is nice to be on the same page with Coach."

The Wolverines also scored touchdowns on their next two drives. Penn State finally got a couple stops, but the Wolverines took a 28-0 halftime lead on Higdon's 2-yard run.

The Nittany Lions got on the board with a field goal early in the third, but Chris Evans made it 35-3 with a 3-yard run and the Wolverines cruised to the win.

THE TAKEAWAY

PENN STATE: The Nittany Lions came into the Big House without any of their starting linebackers then lost Brandon Smith to a second-quarter targeting penalty. That left the Penn State defense helpless against Michigan's running game and short passes. "I don't know if I've ever been through or seen anything like this," Franklin said. "We've got three guys out, and then Brandon gets thrown out going for an interception. Then Jan Johnson comes in, and we lose him, too."

MICHIGAN: The Wolverines dominated in the trenches, with their defensive line continuously overrunning Penn State's offensive line. They registered five sacks while building their first-half lead and Speight had all the time he needed.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

MICHIGAN: The Wolverines came in at No. 4 and there seems little chance that will change much with No. 1 Alabama winning earlier in the day in a blowout and No. 2 Ohio State on a bye.

UP NEXT

PENN STATE: Returns to Happy Valley for the first of three straight home games. The Nittany Lions face Minnesota next Saturday in the Golden Gophers' first trip to Penn State since 2009.

MICHIGAN: Plays its fifth-straight game at the Big House, but will have a tougher test against Wisconsin. The 11th-ranked Badgers routed No. 8 Michigan State 30-6 in East Lansing.

Penn State avenges 2015 loss to Temple, 34-27

 Trace McSorley completed 18 of 24 passes for 287 yards with one touchdown and an interception and rushed for another score to lead Penn State to a 34-27 win against Temple on Saturday.

A year after the Nittany Lions (2-1) were embarrassed in a season-opening loss to the Owls, Penn State scored on three of its first five drives to take a 21-10 halftime lead. Although he left the game with a left leg injury on the first play, running back Saquon Barkley returned in the second half and ended Temple's comeback bid with a 55-yard touchdown run with less than eight minutes to play.

"The decision to put him back in the game was that he was ready," Franklin said. "He actually could've went in a little bit earlier. Obviously Saquon has the ability, if we can create a little more space, he has the ability to break tackles. He has the ability to make people miss. And he has the ability, the speed to finish runs."

Receiver Chris Godwin caught a 52-yard touchdown pass, Andre Robinson and McSorley added short touchdown runs and Tyler Davis kicked two field goals for Penn State.

Temple running back Jahad Thomas returned after missing the first two games with a dislocated left thumb and scored twice for the Owls (1-2). Quarterback Phillip Walker ran for another touchdown and Austin Jones kicked two field goals.

Penn State also honored Joe Paterno on the 50th anniversary of his first game. The in-game video presentation drew cheers from ardent fans in Beaver Stadium, but also drew criticism from some who said honoring Paterno is insensitive to victims in the school's sex abuse scandal.

THE TAKEAWAY

TEMPLE: The Temple defense, so good a year ago, is still a work in progress. The Owls are still searching for playmakers after losing seven starters from that group. They gave up 403 yards with 253 in the first half.

PENN STATE: This game was a must-win for James Franklin, whose short tenure at Penn State hit its lowest point after the Owls routed his Nittany Lions in last season in Philadelphia. A 1-3 mark against in-state rivals Pittsburgh and Temple would have been unacceptable for Penn State fans restless for in-state success.

UP NEXT

TEMPLE: The Owls host Charlotte at Lincoln Financial Field.

PENN STATE: The Nittany Lions travel to Ann Arbor, Mich. to begin the Big Ten season against the Wolverines. Penn State has lost two straight to Michigan.

Pitt holds off Penn State rally to win 42-39

 Pitt and Penn State spent the days leading up to the renewal of their once annual series in a semantic argument over whether they're still rivals.

The Nittany Lions tried to downplay the stakes, with coach James Franklin pointing out the current roster on both sides were toddlers the last time the two schools faced each other in 2000. The Panthers went the other way, with coach Pat Narduzzi bringing in the 1976 national championship team to give a pep talk on what facing Penn State used to - and still could - mean.

Four quarters, nearly four hours and one well-timed interception by a fifth-year cornerback later, consider the debate over. Pitt-Penn State is still very much a thing.

James Conner ran for 117 yards and a touchdown and caught another and senior Ryan Lewis picked off Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley in the end zone with just over a minute to play as the Panthers held on for a 42-39 victory on Saturday in front of the largest crowd to watch a sporting event in the city's history - 69,983.

"I would say going to next year, they're going to think it's a rivalry now," said Pitt safety Jordan Whitehead.

One that shouldn't lack for juice when the two teams meet at Beaver Stadium next fall. Penn State nearly made it all the way back from a 21-point deficit. The Nittany Lions had the ball at the Pitt 31 with less than 90 seconds to play when McSorley dropped back and lofted a rainbow toward the back of the end zone to no one in particular

Lewis, who spent four long years in the program before finally earning significant playing time this fall, cradled it in his arms for the first pick of his career.

"I was just reading the quarterback the whole time," Lewis. "I saw it in the air and took it."

And dealt Franklin another significant blow in a tenure that is still searching for traction. A year after losing on the road in Philadelphia to Temple - next week's opponent - the Nittany Lions currently don't have bragging rights in any corner of the state after looking flat in the first half before getting back in it.

"The fact it was this close at the end of the game speaks volumes for us in the second half," Franklin said. "But we're going to have a hard time if we get ourselves into a 28-7 situation."

Saquon Barkley almost singlehandedly brought the Nittany Lions (1-1) all the way back. The sophomore running back totaled five touchdowns (four rushing, one receiving), the most by a Penn State player since Ki-Jana Carter did it against Michigan State in 1994. Barkley's fifth score, a 2-yard dive with five minutes to play, drew the Nittany Lions within three.

"We started off slow, they punched us in the mouth first," Barkley said. "We responded but we've just got to come out earlier and be ready to play earlier."

SO CLOSE

Moments before Lewis' interception, McSorley threw a lob to wide-open DaeSean Hamilton, who was behind the Pitt defense and had nothing between himself and the go-ahead score. The ball smacked off Hamilton's hands and onto the turf instead.

"For us to get that close and not pull out a win is really upsetting," Hamilton said. "It just comes down to crunch time, us battling back so far and to see the game slip away from me right there is the hardest part."

THE TAKEAWAY

PENN STATE: Barkley is a star in the making but the Nittany Lions curiously didn't get him the ball when it was deep in Pitt territory trailing by a touchdown early in the fourth quarter. Penn State settled for a field goal instead and will have a year to think about what might have been.

PITT: First-year offensive coordinator Matt Canada's playbook is deep. A week after using a nondescript game plan to get past Villanova, Canada used a variety of jet sweeps, shovel passes and play-action to get the ball to his playmakers in space. The Panthers ran for 359 yards and held onto the ball for more than 35 minutes.

UP NEXT

PENN STATE: Welcomes the Owls to State College in a rematch of Temple's one-sided 27-10 win last year. Penn State plans to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Joe Paterno's first game as coach, a decision that has been met with stiff resistance in some areas, including the school's student newspaper.

PITT: The Panthers head west on Saturday to take on No. 22 Oklahoma State (1-1) for the first time in program history. The Cowboys lost on a last-second Hail Mary to Central Michigan.

McSorley, Barkley lead Penn State over Kent State

Trace McSorley isn't offended when he sees defenders packing the line of scrimmage, knowing their primary goal is to stop the electric running back lined up next to or behind him on any given play.

The Penn State quarterback is content to build his own reputation as a playmaker, and eventually, a downfield-passer to be reckoned with.

Although he and the rest of Penn State's new-look offense started slowly in a 33-13 win over Kent State on Saturday, McSorley believes he made positive first steps toward that goal.

"When you've got Saquon (Barkley) in the backfield, teams are going to try to stop him," McSorley said. "The first two drives we kind of got stalled out. The third drive we were able to get some first downs, push the ball down the field a little bit to our receivers to loosen them up a little bit and let Saquon get loose a couple of times."

Barkley finished with 105 yards rushing, and Tyler Davis chipped in two field goals for the Nittany Lions. A 29-yard field goal in the second quarter gave Penn State a 16-13 halftime lead that grew as an opportunistic defense settled in and McSorley found receivers down the field.

After hitting DaeSean Hamilton for a short touchdown pass in the first, McSorley slung a ball to Mike Gesicki for 30 yards to cap the scoring with less than two minutes to go. It was a satisfying finish for the quarterback who'd tried to stretch Kent State's underrated front seven early with deep throws to Saeed Blacknall and Gesicki that just missed.

In the process, McSorley showed off own grittiness as a runner, chipping in 47 yards on the ground and lowering his head to finish off tacklers.

"I thought his composure was really good," Penn State coach James Franklin said. "That's just kind of who he is."

Amani Oruwariye returned an interception for a score in the third quarter for the Nittany Lions who battered a trio of Kent State quarterbacks, sacking them seven times and forcing two more turnovers.

Shane Hynes kicked two field goals for Kent State, and Elcee Refuge returned a McSorley fumble for a touchdown in the second quarter.

ALL OR NOTHING FRONT

Penn State safety Marcus Allen said earlier this week he and his defensive teammates had something to prove even after being ranked among the best defenses in college football each of the past two years.

He understands losing three defensive linemen to the NFL will generate questions of the new guys. After Saturday's sack-filled performance, they have plenty to be proud of. But scrambling quarterbacks are still a problem.

Kent State's threesome of Justin Agner, Mylik Mitchell and George Bollas combined for 50 first-half yards on in scrambles or designed quarterbacks runs. Many came up the middle where defensive tackles Parker Cothren andKevin Givens made their first career starts.

"It was either a sack or it was a scramble for a first down," Franklin said. "We've got to do a better job with our rush lanes on that side of the ball."

INTERCHANGEABLE PARTS

Perhaps Penn State's greatest strength is the versatility it has among its back seven.

The Nittany Lions showed a multitude of nickel looks with different linebacker and corner combinations. Penn State deployed a total of eight defensive backs and five linebackers to limit 129 yards on just 14-of-28 passing.

"We've always been underrated since we've been here," Oruwariye said.

THE TAKEAWAY

KENT STATE: The Golden Flashes haven't had much going for them offensively in quite a while, but their defense remains stout enough to give them hope.

Kent State's front seven kept the game within reach by limiting Barkley's running room early. Vaunted pass-rusherTerence Waugh killed a big wave of Penn State momentum midway through the second quarter when he hammered McSorley from his blindside, forcing a fumble that Refuge returned for a touchdown to tie the game 13-13. If Waugh can keep making plays, the Golden Flashes will have chances to turn games around.

PENN STATE: A coordinator change doesn't guarantee immediate success. Saturday's sluggish start and uneven performance shows Joe Moorhead's offense will need more time for all its parts to get on the same page.

And the sooner the better as games loom against No. 7 Michigan, No. 6 Ohio State, and Maryland, teams that hung at least 52 points on its opponents in their openers. A bunch of missed tackles against Kent State is further evidence that Penn State's offense will have to pull more weight than it has in the two previous years when elite defenses could bail it out.

UP NEXT

Kent State will try to snap its six-game losing streak when it hosts FCS foe North Carolina A&T next Saturday.

Penn State and Pittsburgh will renew a long-dormant rivalry when the Nittany Lions travel to Heinz Field next Saturday for the first game in a home-and-home series. Penn State leads the series 50-42-4 and has won seven of the last eight. Pittsburgh won the last meeting 12-0 in 2000.