The Good, The Bad & The Ugly: Reviewing Penn State’s 27-17 win over Michigan
For the first time since August — before the Big Ten initially postponed the football season, before Penn State kicked off its 2020 campaign against Indiana and before the Nittany Lions had a program-worst 0-5 start — James Franklin looked visibly happy Saturday afternoon.
The seventh-year head coach had just led Penn State to break its five-game skid and get its first win at Michigan since 2009. And during postgame interviews, he was in a noticeably better mood.
“There’s been a lot of things going on this year,” Franklin said after the Nittany Lions’ 27-17 win. “And to see our team battle through that adversity and our program battle through that adversity, with all types of limitations and issues and challenges and (lack of) depth, I couldn’t be happier.”
The Nittany Lions put together their most complete game of the season against the Wolverines.
For the first time all year, Penn State went into halftime with a lead. It also scored in double digits in a first half for the first time since its season opener against the Hoosiers.
Though it’s impossible to fully turn around a season in which the Nittany Lions began by losing five consecutive games, Franklin and his team finally had something to celebrate — even if it was only for one day.
“We’re gonna have Victory Monday dinner,” Franklin said, “which is going to be the most delicious thing I’ve ever tasted in my life.”
GOOD
QB Sean Clifford finds his groove: A large factor that contributed toward Penn State winning its first game of the season on Saturday was improved quarterback play.
After being benched in the second quarter against Nebraska in Week 4 and for almost three full quarters last week against Iowa, redshirt junior quarterback Sean Clifford was again the starter for the Nittany Lions versus Michigan. And it looked like he had regained the swagger that he played with in 2019, when he led Penn State to an 11-2 campaign.
Going into the contest with the Wolverines, Clifford had completed just 87 of his 152 pass attempts (57.2 completion percentage) for 1,070 yards, 10 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He’d also had two fumbles returned for touchdowns.
But Clifford said he’s never doubted himself — even through what’s been a challenging season so far.
On Saturday, the 6-foot-2, 217-pound Ohio native completed 17 of his 28 pass attempts for 163 yards and no interceptions, while adding 73 yards and a touchdown on the ground on nine carries.
Clifford especially got it done with his legs. With 3:40 left in the first half, he broke through the line of scrimmage and out-ran two Michigan defensive backs to the left corner of the end zone for a 28-yard touchdown.
After the contest, Clifford said he felt like he was “back to the Sean that I used to be.” Penn State might just be able to add a couple more wins to its 2020 record if Clifford can regain his 2019 form.
RB Keyvone Lee’s career day: Even in the absence of sophomore running back Devyn Ford, Penn State had its best game on the ground all season against Michigan. That’s thanks to freshman running back Keyvone Lee — who got the first start of his career.
Lee finished Saturday afternoon with career highs of 134 rushing yards on 22 carries. He scored a touchdown, too.
With 10:50 left in the first quarter, Lee scored the game’s first touchdown on a 6-yard run during the Nittany Lions’ opening drive. The 6-foot, 230-pound Florida native took a handoff from Clifford before finding a hole and running into the end zone untouched. It marked his third touchdown of the year.
Then, on Penn State’s first drive of the fourth quarter, Lee broke free for his longest run of the day. After taking a handoff near midfield, Lee stiff-armed Wolverines linebacker Adam Shibley and ran down the right side of the field for a 24-yard gain. The play helped the Nittany Lions march into Wolverines territory and eventually score a touchdown to extend their lead to 10 points.
If Lee is able to build off his career performance in Penn State’s final three games of the season, the Nittany Lions’ rushing attack will continue to be effective — no matter how much success Ford and freshman running back Caziah Holmes are able to have.
WR Parker Washington leads receiving corps: Another freshman who helped lead the way for Penn State’s offense on Saturday against Michigan was receiver Parker Washington.
Even though junior receiver Jahan Dotson had an uncharacteristically quiet outing (three catches for 30 yards), Washington helped make sure the Nittany Lions’ passing attack was a threat. The 5-foot-10, 205-pound Sugar Land, Texas, native caught nine passes for 93 yards — both career bests. No other Nittany Lions receiver had more than three catches or 30 yards in the contest.
Washington’s first catch of the day was a 20-yard reception that came on Penn State’s first offensive drive. The grab allowed the Nittany Lions to get down to Michigan’s 33-yard line and score a touchdown — on Lee’s 6-yard run — four plays later.
And Washington’s longest reception of the day — a 22-yard grab — came in the second quarter. When it looked as if Penn State’s offense had stalled out on 3rd-and-8 from its own 26-yard line, Washington’s catch put the Nittany Lions’ close to Wolverine territory. Penn State scored five plays later to take a seven-point lead with 3:32 to go before halftime.
Before Saturday’s matchup against Michigan, Washington had 70 or more receiving yards against Ohio State, Maryland and Nebraska.
It’s still early in the freshman’s career, but Washington is beginning to look more and more like Penn State’s WR1 of the future.
BAD
Run defense: Though Penn State won, its run defense still looked porous at times during Saturday’s contest against Michigan.
The Nittany Lions gave up 174 rushing yards and two touchdowns on the ground to the Wolverines. They also let Michigan running back Hassan Haskins have his way for the majority of the game — Haskins finished with 101 yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries.
On Michigan’s second drive, it took the Wolverines only four plays to find the end zone. Haskins opened the drive by breaking free for a 59-yard run in which at least a couple Nittany Lions badly missed tackles. Then, it was Haskins who finished the drive with a two-yard rushing touchdown three plays later to tie the game at the end of the first quarter.
Haskins also scored the first touchdown of the fourth quarter for the Wolverines. His 2-yard rush to the end zone cut Michigan’s deficit to three points with 13:12 left in the contest.
The Wolverines came into Saturday’s game ranked No. 96 in the country in rushing yards per game, averaging 131 per contest, but their ground game looked formidable against the Nittany Lions.
If Penn State hopes to add a couple more wins to its 2020 record, it will need to tighten up its run defense and not give up as many big plays on the ground.
Absence of RB Devyn Ford: After leaving Penn State’s game last week against Iowa after the first drive because of an apparent injury, sophomore running back Devyn Ford didn’t play Saturday against Michigan. According to the ABC broadcast, Ford didn’t even make the trip to Ann Arbor because of a death in his family.
Lee carried the load well against the Wolverines — the freshman ran for 134 yards and a touchdown. But if Ford’s injury happens to be season-ending, he will be the third Nittany Lions running back to have to cut his 2020 campaign short. Star redshirt junior running back Journey Brown was forced to medically retire because of a heart condition, and standout sophomore running back Noah Cain was ruled out for the season after a foot injury in Week 1 against Indiana.
Through the five games he’s played in, Ford has totaled 209 rushing yards (41.8 per game) and two touchdowns on the ground. The Virginia native was supposed to be Penn State’s new No. 1 option at running back in the absence of Brown and Cain.
And even though Lee demonstrated Saturday that he’s capable of leading the Nittany Lions’ running back room, another hit to the team’s depth — especially at a key position — isn’t what Penn State needs in an already tumultuous season.
UGLY
Red zone offense: Penn State’s inability to convert on opportunities to score touchdowns in the red zone has been one of the themes of this season.
Though the Nittany Lions had a slightly better than usual performance in this department — scoring on four of their five trips to the red zone — they still didn’t capitalize on key chances to put points on the board. Out of its five trips inside the 20-yard line, Penn State only scored two touchdowns.
In the final seconds of the first half, the Nittany Lions had a 1st-and-goal on the Wolverine’s 5-yard line with a seven-point lead and one timeout remaining. Penn State opted to spike the ball on first down instead of use its final timeout. Clifford couldn’t connect with Dotson or Lee on his next two pass attempts, and the Nittany Lions had to settle for a 22-yard field goal.
There was also the drive at the end of the third quarter. With about three minutes left until the fourth quarter, Clifford scrambled for 29 yards to drive Penn State down to Michigan’s 23-yard line. A 6-yard catch and 1-yard rush by Holmes got the Nittany Lions in the red zone, but they couldn’t keep the drive alive on 3rd-and-3 from the Wolverine’s 16-yard line and again settled for a field goal.
If Penn State had turned either of those red zone field goals into touchdowns, maybe it could’ve put Saturday’s game away even sooner.
This story was originally published November 29, 2020 at 1:34 PM.
