The year was 2016. 2016 was the year Rihanna released her last album and it is also the year that Penn State last beat Ohio State. The Buckeyes defeated the Nittany Lions 20-13 on Saturday afternoon to secure the program's eighth consecutive victory over the team from Happy Valley. New Year, but its the same Penn State.
The Nittany Lions came into this game undefeated after having impressive victories over a solid Illinois team and against USC on the road (hostile environment). Penn State welcomed former Kansas offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki to spice up a rather boring offense they had last season. Up until Saturday's game, Kotelnicki's presence on the offense was working out. However, in today's game, the offense looked similar to how it was under former offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich.
Penn State went 3/11 on third down and failed to cash-in twice on goal-to-go situations, which includes the failed fourth-down attempt at the goal line at the end of the game, but more on that later.
Outside of an early pick-six from Ohio State quarterback Will Howard, who tossed for 182 yards and 2 touchdowns and a fumble (led to touchback), the Nittany Lions offense couldn't score a single touchdown despite its defense having played relatively well.
Also, did Penn State realize they have one of the best tight-ends in the entire country? Penn State star tight-end Tyler Warren accumulated just 4 catches for 47 yards on only 5 targets throughout the entire 28:31 mintutes of offensive possession. Warren, the Nittany Lions top pass catcher, didn't even get a target in the redzone. One would think a 6'6, 257Ibs tight-end would be very useful in the redzone.
The Nittany Lions had a prime opportunity to tie the game late in the fourth quarter. The Penn State offense was at the Ohio State 1-yard line but failed to capitalize. Kotelnicki called three consecutive unsuccessful half-back dives with rusher Kaytron Allen. On fourth down, Penn State quarterback Drew Allar dropped back to pass and then threw a ball that had no chance of being caught.
The Buckeyes offensive line then further continued its dominance on the ensuing possession to run out the clock and secure its first top-5 victory of the season. Ohio State rusher Quinshon Judkins had a 15 yard, 6 yard, and a 9 yard rush on Ohio State's final drive. The Buckeye's earned four first downs throughout the game-sealing drive, which is a testament to just how outmatched the Nittany Lions's defensive line was compared to Ohio State's offensive line.
Yes, Allar and the offense contructed a solid drive at the end of the first half and it took an "out of this world" interception by Davison Igbinosun. However, to not score an offensive touchdown throughout the entire game even after their defense spotted them seven points (pick-six) early in the game is mind-boggling.
As for Penn State head coach James Franklin, what's next? After Saturday's game, Franklin is now 3-18 against top-10 opponents and 1-10 against top-5 teams, respectively. Penn State is a premier program in College football yes, but they are still viewed as the "little brother" year in and year out to Ohio State and Michigan.
Penn State has had a strong season thus far coming into this game, meanwhile, the Buckeyes were coming off a close game against an unranked Nebraska team at home.
James Franklin responded to heckling Penn State fans after the loss to Ohio State: “If you’re gonna be man enough to talk, what’s your name?” pic.twitter.com/kILxOn8UqU
— Seth Engle (@bigsengtweets) November 2, 2024
The video above is just a snippet of how Penn State nation is feeling towards Franklin and the program. Franklin, who has been at the helm since 2014, has built up the reputation of not being able to win the "big games" and Saturday's matchup just continued to feed that narrative.
Sure, Penn State is still in position to make the College Football Playoff, but this game had a lot of emotional stake into it. Moreover, this was the biggest game in Happy Valley for quite some time, just ask the 110,045 (stadium-record) in attendance.
The Nittany Lions's head scratching play-calling, not getting the ball to its best pass catcher in Warren, and its defensive line being dominated (especially on Ohio State's final drive) contributed to another loss to "big brother".
New Year, same Penn State football, unfortunately.