Penn State Football: Blitz Stickers from Nittany Lions’ win over Iowa

Iowa’s Nate Stanley had a poor day against the Lions, completing only 18 of his 49 attempts for 205 yards and two killer interceptions. The Penn State defense was a big reason for his poor performance and defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos was the star of the show.

The defensive line got after Stanley all game long, rattling the junior quarterback. Gross-Matos led the way with nine tackles, two sacks and four tackles for loss. It was a breakout performance for the sophomore from Virginia, one the Lions absolutely needed to win the game.

The Penn State defense had taken a beating all season long. Even in victories early in the year, they were giving up too many rushing yards and not getting enough pressure on opposing quarterbacks. The last couple of games, the Lions have seen a turnaround, with a lot of pressure coming from the defensive ends.

Gross-Matos has tallied 19 tackles, six tackles for loss and four sacks against in the last two games versus Indiana and Iowa. He has been the catalyst of the improvements on defense the Lions have seen over the last couple games and even in a loss against Michigan State. Look for Gross-Matos to be a presence in opposing backfields in the Lions’ final four games of the season.