Trace McSorley, Penn State dominate Maryland 38-3 in regular-season finale

The last time the Nittany Lions were 14-point favorites, they lost in stupefying fashion at home to Michigan State. But on Saturday, Penn State didn’t allow another head-scratching loss in Happy Valley.

The No. 12 Nittany Lions — a fringe New Year’s Six contender — looked the part in a 38-3 Senior Day win over Maryland. With a cushy bowl game ahead, Penn State (9-3) now has a chance at three consecutive 10-win seasons.

Trace McSorley, in his final game at Beaver Stadium, earned win No. 31 for his career and passed Christian Hackenberg for the program’s all-time completions record. The fifth-year senior connected on 12 0f 22 passes for 230 yards while adding 64 yards on the ground.

Miles Sanders and Ricky Slade ran rampant against the sieve that was Maryland’s front four. Sanders finished with 128 yards on 14 carries, while his true freshman backup had 64 yards on 11 attempts.

And the Nittany Lion defense showed up yet again. Facing an attack that went off for 51 points and 535 yards against Ohio State a week ago, Penn State stood its ground. Brent Pry’s unit allowed 259 yards (185 passing, 74 rushing) to the Terrapins. The effort was led by Sean Spencer’s “Wild Dogs” up front, most notably Yetur Gross-Matos and Kevin Givens.

Player of the game

Trace McSorley: Was there ever a doubt?

For an offense that has struggled to get in a rhythm early during Big Ten play, McSorley guided the Nittany Lions to a pair of early touchdowns. His 34-yard dart to KJ Hamler set up a 3-yard touchdown run on Penn State’s first drive.

But he wasn’t done. McSorley polished off an 8-play, 75-yard drive late in the first quarter with a 20-yard scoring scramble. It was a vintage McSorley play, buying time in the pocket before figuratively saying, “Screw it,” and taking it himself through the heart of Maryland’s defense. McSorley had a passing touchdown, too, finding true freshman tight end Pat Freiermuth on a 7-yard toss in the fourth quarter.

In his Happy Valley finale, No. 9 accounted for 294 total yards (230 passing, 64 rushing). Not a bad way to say good-bye.

Stat that mattered

52: That was Maryland’s rushing total at halftime.

Last week, the Terrapins tore up Ohio State with 339 total rushing yards. Freshman back Anthony McFarland had three runs of 50 yards or more in the first half alone.

The Nittany Lions holding Maryland to 52 yards on 19 carries (2.74 per attempt) was one impressive half of football.

Unsung hero

Defensive line: The entire front four deserves credit here.

Gross-Matos has a future on Sundays, racking up 3.5 tackles for loss. Givens had 2 sacks, Robert Windsor took down Maryland’s Tyrrell Pigrome once, and Shareef Miller fought through double teams all day long.

Spencer, the defensive line’s position coach, is in line for a raise.

Up next

Bowl watch: The Nittany Lions — currently ranked No. 12 in the College Football Playoff rankings — are in the hunt for at-large bid to a New Year’s Six game, either the Fiesta or Peach Bowl. The Buckeyes’ win over Michigan wasn’t ideal this weekend; neither was Washington’s Apple Cup victory against Washington State or Florida’s rivalry blowout of Florida State.

The Citrus Bowl is looking more likely for the Nittany Lions. But they can get some help on conference championship weekend with wins for Alabama, Ohio State, Oklahoma and Washington. Make your viewing plans accordingly, Nittany Lion fans.

This story was originally published November 24, 2018 at 6:47 PM.