Backup QB Will Levis provides ‘spark’ for Penn State’s offense in loss to Nebraska
For much of the week leading up to Penn State’s game against Nebraska on Saturday, head coach James Franklin and his team restated their confidence in redshirt junior quarterback Sean Clifford being the starter.
After Clifford again struggled during last week’s loss to Maryland, junior receiver Jahan Dotson said he still believed Clifford was “one of the best quarterbacks in the country.” Junior tight end Pat Freiermuth said Tuesday that Clifford was “doing everything he needs to do” to be on the path to success. And also on Tuesday, Franklin said Clifford would remain the starter and that he wasn’t the type of coach that “yanks guys and has quarterbacks looking over their shoulder.”
But a crucial error early in the second quarter of the Nittany Lions’ 30-23 loss to the Cornhuskers seemed to be the final straw.
With 11:29 to play until halftime, Clifford lost the ball when he was sacked by Nebraska safety Deontai Williams in Nittany Lions territory. Williams scooped up the loose ball and ran it back 26 yards for a touchdown to put Penn State in a 21-point hole. This came after Clifford threw an interception that set up a Cornhuskers field goal on the Nittany Lions’ first drive of the game.
Backup redshirt sophomore quarterback Will Levis checked in. Eventually, the momentum of the contest shifted.
“I think there’s no doubt about it — he went in and gave us a spark,” Franklin said of Levis after the loss. “He made plays in the passing game. I thought he did a good job managing the game overall.”
Levis only had one career start under his belt heading into Saturday — the 6-foot-3, 222-pound quarterback started last season against Rutgers when Clifford was hurt. But he said he’d always prepared like he was the starter from the minute he got to campus in the fall of 2018.
And it showed.
After only throwing the ball five times for the remainder of the first half, Penn State’s coaching staff let Levis air it out more after heading into halftime down 27-6.
On the Nittany Lions’ second drive of the third quarter, Levis completed a 21-yard pass to junior receiver Jahan Dotson that helped set up a 31-yard rushing touchdown by freshman running back Keyvone Lee. That drive was the catalyst that led Penn State to begin to stage a comeback.
Then, Levis made one of the plays of the game in the fourth quarter. He rolled left out of the pocket to evade pressure and launched a 74-yard bomb to Freiermuth, who got stopped just short of the goal line. Sophomore running back Devyn Ford rushed up the middle for a 5-yard touchdown two plays later. All of sudden, the Nittany Lions were only behind by a touchdown with nine minutes to go.
Levis has said before that no matter where he is on the depth chart, his approach doesn’t change. It’s this mindset that allowed him to be ready for his moment Saturday afternoon.
“I think just having that mindset, having that emphasis on preparation throughout the week — regardless of where you think you are or where you think you might be in the future — just helps immensely when your opportunity comes to you,” he said.
But when the Nittany Lions got the ball for one final chance to tie the contest with a little over two minutes to go, they couldn’t do enough. Levis drove his team down to the Nebraska 13-yard line, but he couldn’t get a clean pass off in time on fourth-and-goal before getting hit by Cornhuskers defensive tackle Ben Stille.
Even in a loss, Levis may have done enough to take Clifford’s starting role for the remainder of the year. The redshirt sophomore finished 14-31 passing for 219 yards and added 61 yards on the ground.
Still, after the game Franklin said he wouldn’t name a starting quarterback before “discussing it as a staff” or “evaluating the tape.”
“I thought Will did some really good things coming in for us,” Franklin said. “So obviously, that will be a discussion all week long, and I know we’ll talk about it later in the week.”
It doesn’t matter to Levis when that decision is made, or what decision is ultimately made. For him, it’s just about doing what he’s always done — staying ready.
“I’m gonna put my trust in the coaches,” Levis said. “And I’m always going to be willing to do whatever’s best for the team and just gonna approach every practice, every day the same way I’ve been doing it.”
This story was originally published November 14, 2020 at 7:48 PM.
