Penn State Football: 3 takeaways from critical win over Indiana in Week 12

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UNIVERSITY PARK, PA – OCTOBER 19: KJ Hamler #1 of the Penn State Nittany Lions carries the ball on a touchdown reception during the fourth quarter against the Michigan Wolverines on October 19, 2019 at Beaver Stadium in University Park, Pennsylvania. Penn State defeats Michigan 28-21. (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images) /

3. Penn State won without KJ Hamler

K.J. Hamler left the game in the first half after he was tackled and landed on his head. The training staff took his helmet and he did not return to the game. Without their big-play threat, the Nittany Lions had to find offense elsewhere. They went with the ground game.

Sean Clifford did not have a great game throwing, but he ran the ball well including a 38-yard touchdown run. In fact, the Nittany Lions decided to shorten the game, and run the football. Penn State ran the ball 45 times for 192 yards. Running back Journey Brown ran four 100 yards on 21 carries.

Penn State proved they didn’t need Hamler’s production.

The Nittany Lions running the ball limited Indiana’s opportunities to score, and they weren’t able to establish a rhythm on offense. The Nittany Lion defense did an outstanding job against Indiana’s offense, and stymied running back Stevie Scott.

Most importantly, you didn’t see Penn State’s offense go away for stretches.

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