Penn State football dominates Villanova, 38-17, to stay undefeated
Penn State football took care of business Saturday afternoon in Beaver Stadium, handing FCS opponent Villanova its first loss of the season.
The Nittany Lions are now 4-0 after defeating the Wildcats 38-17.
The game started hot for the Penn State offense. Redshirt senior quarterback Sean Clifford hit senior wide receiver Jahan Dotson for a 52-yard touchdown on the first offensive play of the game, and he followed it up with a 52-yard catch and run for sophomore Parker Washington.
The game was never truly in doubt for the Nittany Lions as they continued to pile up points while preventing the Wildcats from doing much offensively.
They continued that momentum early in the second half with an 83-yard touchdown from Clifford to sophomore receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith, as the senior quarterback spread the ball around to his weapons.
His 23-yard touchdown to Washington was his fourth on the day and helped the receiver build off a spectacular performance.
The Nittany Lions were able to put in plenty of backups in the game, ultimately getting backup quarterback Ta’Quan Roberson in when they were up 38-10 in the fourth quarter with 9:34 on the clock.
The redshirt sophomore played X drives and completed three passes on five attempts for 28 yards in the game. His performance closed out the 38-17 victory for the Nittany Lions to get them to 4-0.
Player of the game
Sophomore wide receiver Parker Washington: Several Penn State wide receivers could have been the pick here, but we’ll go with Washington. The sophomore receiver finished the game with five catches for two touchdowns and a career high 148 yards on five targets for the Nittany Lions. Washington broke a 52-yard touchdown in the first half and very well could have had a second with a better throw. He had a 67-yard reception that would’ve been a touchdown if Clifford led him to the open field, but instead he had to come back to the ball to catch it.
He still made it work, dodging Villanova defenders in the open field, but stepped out of bounds at the nine-yard line. Still, the sophomore showed off his talent once again with his excellent route running his hands on his way to a big game.
Play of the game
Jahan Dotson opens the scoring: The Penn State offense’s hot start was in part due to some questionable defensive playcalling to start the game. Senior wide receiver Jahan Dotson lined up across from a Villanova corner with no safety help over the top. He ran a post route and, unsurprisingly, blew right by his man to get open. Clifford hit Dotson in stride for the easy touchdown, setting the tone for the Nittany Lions.
They already had a talent gap to overcome, but the decision to have single coverage against a game-breaking talent like Dotson out of the gate was a questionable one by the Wildcats. They paid for it immediately and Penn State never looked back from there on its way to a 38-17 victory.
Stat of the game
80: That’s how many rushing yards Penn State had in the game, far fewer than one would expect against an FCS opponent like Villanova. The Nittany Lions have struggled running the ball for the most part this season and its not a good sign that they couldn’t get rolling against an inferior opponent that lacked the size to make life difficult. Alas, that’s exactly what the Wildcats did.
They were able to get a push on the Penn State offensive line, rather than the other way around, and get the Nittany Lion running backs down before they could get going. If Penn State reaches its ceiling this year, it’s going to have to be because the passing game can take over games.
Up next
vs. Indiana: Penn State is set for another night game next week when it takes on Indiana at 7:30 p.m. The Hoosiers have lost to both of their ranked opponents this season, falling to Iowa 34-6 in their season opener and 38-24 to Cincinnati.
The Nittany Lions will be another difficult game for the Hoosiers and should lead to a Penn State victory. A win over Indiana would make Penn State 5-0 heading into a matchup with Iowa at Kinnick Stadium Oct. 9.
This story was originally published September 25, 2021 at 3:11 PM.
