Here are 3 takeaways from Penn State football’s 21-17 loss to Michigan
Penn State took its fourth loss of the season after Michigan won 21-17 on Saturday afternoon.
The Nittany Lions took a lead with just a few minutes remaining in the game, but had their hopes and dreams crushed by Wolverines tight end Erick All, who caught a pass from Cade McNamara and ran it in from 47 yards out to give them a 21-17 lead with 3:29 remaining.
Here are three takeaways from Penn State’s 21-17 loss to Michigan.
Defensive breakdowns were the nail in the coffin
The Nittany Lions had multiple chances to stop Michigan on their second to final drive of the game. Down 17-14, McNamara marched down the field with under four minutes to go in the game. He finished off the drive with a 47-yard touchdown pass to All, who found himself open with a breakdown in Penn State’s coverage.
It was something that seemingly happened at the most of inopportune times for the Nittany Lions. While they gave up 21 points — not the worst of margins — they couldn’t hold McNamara to under 200 yards. McNamara entered the game with passing numbers going 130-for-208 (62.5%) 1,666 yards, nine touchdowns and two interceptions. He made the right throws against Penn State and finished going 19-for-29 for 217 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. Multiple breakdowns in coverage allowed for 11.4 yards per completion in the passing game.
Michigan running back Hassan Haskins carved up Penn State’s defense with 31 carries for 156 rushing yards for 5.03 yards per carry. While he didn’t find the end zone, it was essential to Michigan’s success in finding it anyway.
Penn State’s offense is Jekyll and Hyde
Penn State’s offense went into the half with six points, after being pushed around in the trenches consistently in the beginning of the game. The Nittany Lion finally seemed to wake up, especially with the play of star receiver Jahan Dotson, who manhandled his way to a scoring drive for Penn State — setting up a 2-yard touchdown pass by Sean Clifford to Tyler Warren.
The biggest change in the second half was Penn State’s running game. The Nittany Lions had just 30 yards in the first half on the ground and followed up with 79 yards in the second. Their 22 carries in the first half gave them just 1.4 yards per carry, juxtaposed with their 20 carries for four yards per carry in the second half, the team that showed up in the first half seemed completely different. Whatever adjustment that they made to change the team’s fortunes in the second half — whether it’s using running back Keyvone Lee more, who ran 20 times for 88 yards on 4.4 yards per pop — they need to continue to push forward with that.
Why attempt a fake field goal from 2 yards out?
Another coaching decision that has left many scratching their heads was Penn State’s attempt to run a fake field goal on the 2-yard line. With a little less than four minutes left in the first quarter, the Nittany Lions decided to flip the ball into the hands of kicker Jordan Stout. Stout was subsequently pummeled by Michigan defender Vincent Gray and fumbled the ball. Tt was recovered by Wolverine defensive back Daxton Hill. The loss was for 18 yards and set the Wolverines up with better field position than they would’ve had if the Nittany Lions went for the 2-yard touchdown rush on fourth down. Not to mention, if Penn State converted on fourth down, they could have won the game.
This story was originally published November 13, 2021 at 4:35 PM.
