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Penn State Football: 3 takeaways from win over Indiana in Week 5

By James Costanz

Oct 2, 2021; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Fireworks go off over top of Beaver Stadium as the the Indiana Hoosiers and the Penn State Nittany Lions take the field prior to the game. Mandatory Credit: Matthew OHaren-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 2, 2021; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Fireworks go off over top of Beaver Stadium as the the Indiana Hoosiers and the Penn State Nittany Lions take the field prior to the game. Mandatory Credit: Matthew OHaren-USA TODAY Sports /
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Last year, Penn State and Indiana kicked off the Big Ten season with an electric game that concluded with a game-winning two-point conversion by Michael Penix Jr.

Fast forward to today where Penn State is the No. 4 team in the country with a chance to get into the top three after Oregon’s loss. Indiana is not the team they were last year, but still display the heart and grit that Tom Allen’s teams have become famous for.

Tonight’s primetime showdown was dominated by Penn State’s defense who pitched a shutout for the first time since September of 2019. It was an offensive struggle early on for both sides.

Both teams combined to go 4-for-16 on third down in the first half as Penn State went into the locker room with a 14-0 lead.

Penn State was able to rush the ball effectively and control the tempo throughout the game. Indiana on the other hand was only able to drive into Penn State territory on three occasions.

They punted six times in the first half and were only able to sniff the end zone after a Sean Clifford interception. They were set up at the Penn State 13-yard-line and would get stuffed at the goal line on just four downs.

Another key difference was that one team had Jahan Doctson and the other team did not. Doctson had yet another brilliant game, as he emerges as one of the premier receivers in all of college football.

After a primetime showdown in Happy Valley, what did we learn?

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