Michigan’s hope against a deafening Beaver Stadium whiteout and a revenge-minded, No. 2 Penn State team looked clear cut — keep the Nittany Lions in check with the nation’s No. 1 total defense and find ways to score.
That hope lasted roughly five minutes. The 42-13 pummeling that followed seemed to last forever, Michigan (5-2, 2-2 Big Ten) simply lacking the weapons to stay with Penn State (7-0, 4-0).
“I thought their offense played extremely well,” Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh said. “That’s an understatement. They were hitting on all cylinders. Their back was really good, as advertised, and their quarterback, [Trace] McSorley, played really well.
“The quarterback was hot; the receivers made plays downfield. It was impressive.”
The Nittany Lions rolled on offense, tailback Saquon Barkley rushing 15 times for 108 yards and two touchdowns while adding three catches for 53 yards and another TD. McSorley proved a dual threat himself, going 17 of 26 through the air for 282 yards and one touchdown while keeping the ball 11 times for 76 yards and three more TDs.
The Wolverines matched their worst beating since Harbaugh came to town (Ohio State in 2015), Penn State demonstrating all the mercy a wolf would an injured fawn. PSU head coach James Franklin came in 0-3 against the Wolverines and didn’t plan on leaving 0-4.
Michigan managed 269 total yards to Penn State’s 506, fifth-year senior quarterback John O’Korn going 16-of-28 passing for 166 yards. But aside from a second-quarter rally to briefly reignite hopes, the Wolverines were in for a whiteout wipeout in a valley that was all too happy for the locals.
Penn State showed some swagger before it ever touched the football, winning the toss and electing to receive. Forty-three seconds later, everyone underscored why.
Barkley took a direct snap from center, burst off the left side of the line and raced 69 yards untouched for the opening score. All the talk about Michigan needing to not fall behind and stay in the game via the defense seemed to evaporate like a sweat drop in the sizzling skillet that was Beaver Stadium.
“I wouldn’t say shocked,” fifth-year senior captain and linebacker Mike McCray said, when asked to describe his emotions. “Disappointed in ourselves. We gave up a lot of points, a lot of yards. It was just one of those days … it wasn’t our day.”
The Nittany Lions regained the ball on a three-and-out and immediately doubled down. McSorley ripped off a 23-yard run, bombed a jump ball to tight end Mike Gesicki for 35 and pitched to Barkley for the final 15 yards of a four-play, 78-yard touchdown drive.
In the opening 4:49, Penn State went up 14-0, putting nearly as many points on the board as Michigan’s defense gave up on average over the first six games.
“They made the big plays, and we didn’t,” O’Korn said. “They picked up huge chunks of yards on third down, and that was huge for them. We weren’t able to match that.”
The Nittany Lions looked ready to make it 21-0 on three possessions, before sophomore cornerback David Long sliced in to pick off a McSorley pass in Michigan territory. He returned it 25 yards to the Michigan 41, and jammed a finger in the whiteout dike.
The Wolverines drove 69 yards in 11 plays and nearly couldn’t go the final few inches. But after Penn State stonewalled fifth-year senior fullback Khalid Hill on two straight plays, junior running back Karan Higdon (15 carries, 45 yards, one TD) took a pitch and beat the PSU defense to the pylon for a one-yard touchdown.
Yet even that huge turnaround arrived with the reminder of the uphill climb Michigan faced.
The all-time-record Beaver Stadium crowd of 110,823 rained down boos on redshirt freshman placekicker Quinn Nordin, who originally committed to Penn State before switching to Michigan. Nordin missed the extra point, making it only 14-6 at the 12:53 mark of the second quarter.
The Wolverines settled down anyway, sophomore corner Lavert Hill executing a nice pass breakup of a deep ball on fourth-and-seven, after Penn State had driven to the U-M 35. O’Korn responded by directing an eight-play, 67-yard touchdown drive.
O’Korn scrambled out for 14 yards, then hit freshman wideout Donovan Peoples-Jones for 18, igniting the march. He lofted a 23-yard sideline toss on which sophomore wideout Kekoa Crawford made a strong over-the-shoulder catch to set the Wolverines up at the PSU 6.
Fifth-year senior tailback Ty Isaac rumbled in the final six yards for the touchdown. With 1:45 remaining in the half, Michigan had pulled within one, 14-13, a stunning turnaround after the start.
Just when it looked like Michigan would escape the half down just one point, though, McSorley cranked up the downfield attack again. He connected on throws of 12, 36 and 17 yards on the way to his own three-yard touchdown run with 53 ticks left before intermission.
Penn State went to the locker room up 21-13, putting more points on the board in a half than the Wolverines had surrendered all season.
Soon enough, it got worse.
McSorley drove Penn State 80 yards in nine plays on its first possession of the second half. He connected on passes of 26, eight, 11 and nine yards before scoring himself by bolting up the middle, cutting to his left and out-running U-M’s defense 13 yards to the pylon.
With 5:13 remaining in the third quarter, U-M again faced a two-touchdown deficit, at 28-13.
One thing Michigan hadn’t done to fuel the Nittany Lions involved turning the ball over. That changed when the Wolverines opened the fourth quarter with O’Korn coughing it up on a sack and Penn State pouncing on it at the Michigan 46.
U-M paid two plays later, McSorley unloading a 42-yard touchdown bomb to Barkley. Barkley broke free on a wheel route, bobbled the pass high in the air, then secured it to apply the choke hold at 35-13 with 13:11 remaining.
McSorley added a nine-yard touchdown run to cap a 48-yard drive, after Michigan made a last-ditch attempt to move the chains on fourth down near midfield.
The Wolverines offered no second-half answers, but acknowledged they’ll need to find some in the second half of the season.
"We’ve got a great group of guys,” Higdon said. “I wouldn’t trade this for the world. I’ve been here three years, and we’ve won a lot of games. We’ve lost two this year. We played a great team today, and we got punched in the mouth.
“We’ve just got to regroup and keep going. That’s what it’s all about — the next game.”
Top Five Players Of The Game
1. Penn State running back Saquon Barkley: Barkley is one of the Big Ten’s best backs ever and fully showed it off in front of the home crowd. His 108 yards rushing, 53 receiving and three touchdowns are the bottom line, but his 69-yard TD bolt before some settled into their seats set the tone.
2. Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley: McSorley torched the Wolverines with his arm and his legs, throwing for 282 yards and running for 76 more while accounting for four total TDs. He owned the QBs match-up on a night when the Nittany Lions held the title to most everything.
3. Penn State wide receiver DaeSean Hamilton: Hamilton seemed to be there every time McSorley needed to make something happen. He hauled in six catches for 115 yards and gave the U-M secondary — which had held up all year long — its first serious black eye.
4. Penn State linebacker Jason Cabinda: Cabinda was all over the field for the Nittany Lions, making a sack and a tackle for loss among his 13 overall stops. He also forced a fumble for a Penn State defense that won a match-up within a match-up.
5. Sophomore cornerback Lavert Hill: Hill held his own on a night when few Michigan defensive players could say the same. His fourth-down pass breakup set up the drive that brought Michigan within a point, and he wound up with half a TFL among seven stops.
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