What Went Wrong for Penn State? Plenty
James Franklin didn't want to talk about the final call, the Penn State players didn't want to blame it for the loss and quarterback Sean Clifford wasn't even standing while both teams celebrated during the painful review.
All Clifford wanted to know was what to worry about next.
"It's one of those things where, I'm not going to sit here and hold my breath," he said. "Whatever the call is, the call is. Since that was the last play, and there wasn't really anything else to think about other than who won the game or not, I just couldn't help but start thinking about the corrections I could make and how I could be better."
Penn State's 36-35 overtime loss to Indiana on Saturday ended with one of the most disputed final-play calls in the program's history. Indiana quarterback Michael Penix Jr. dived for the pylon on a two-point conversion, stretching the ball with every inch of his 6-3 body past Lions safety Jaquan Brisker.
According to the NCAA rulebook, "A ball in player possession is out of bounds when either the ball or any part of the ball carrier touches the ground or anything else that is out of bounds..."
Did the ball touch the ground before Penix struck the pylon with it? It's a difficult call to make in real time, one that probably wouldn't have been overturned either way. That's why both teams celebrated until the ruling of a touchdown was confirmed.
Which left Penn State leaving Memorial Stadium stung but not really wondering how or why it lost to Indiana for just the second time in their series' 24 games. The Lions were quite clear about the reasons, if not the final ruling.
"We shot ourselves in the foot too many times, and we can't put ourselves in that situation," tight end Pat Freiermuth said.
"There were things that we could have done better," safety Lamont Wade added. "Was the ball out at the end? Who really knows? Does it matter now? Not at all."
Coach James Franklin and the players entered the game naturally expecting some layoff rust, particularly with a new offense, but didn't anticipate what happened. The Lions committed 10 penalties and three turnovers, an exceptionally rare double-shot in Franklin's six previous seasons. In fact, Franklin couldn't remember that happening in his 10 seasons as as head coach.
There was an exceptionally costly mental error. Running back Devyn Ford, who saw more playing time because of Noah Cain's injury, scored a touchdown with 1:42 remaining that gave Penn State a 28-20 lead.
But Franklin, who thought Indiana allowed Ford to score, had told his offense to consider that option. The team practiced that scenario last week, and Franklin reminded the players not to score early, use the clock and force Indiana to take its final timeout. Perhaps Franklin wasn't clear or forceful enough.
Ford clearly remembered, but it was too late. Momentum carried him into the end zone, and then Indiana carried that into its ensuing 75-play drive to tie the game. Freiermuth was among those consoling the sophomore running back for scoring a touchdown, which doesn't happen too often.
"It doesn't come down to one play," Freiermuth said. "... I talked to Devyn. I told him to stay off social media, flush it down and I’m going to have your back regardless. ... We turned the ball over way too many times."
Penn State's mistakes were both chronic and acute. Backup quarterback Will Levis, who took a delay penalty on his first snap, fumbled in the red zone on his second. Both plays squelched a potential second-quarter scoring drive.
Wade returned the ball to his offense, only to watch kicker Jake Pinegar (who missed one field goal last season) hit the left upright from 25 yards.
In the second half, Pinegar missed another field goal (this one from 47 yards) after a well-executed drive that went astray because of two penalties. Linebacker Jesse Luketa was called (and ejected) for targeting on a play on which Wade recovered a fumble. Indiana finished that drive with a field goal to take a 20-14 lead.
And following the Ford miscue, Penix led a terrific 75-yard play touchdown drive that benefitted from two more Penn State penalties, including a personal foul.
Given one more chance via an Indiana miscue (kicker Jared Smolar's 14-yard squib), Penn State lapsed once more. Clifford scrambled for nine yards but took 11 seconds on first down, later lamenting that he should have gotten a few more.
On second down, Franklin wanted a quick out or throwaway, and Clifford ended up doing the latter. Had the Lions got a 4-yard completion there, kicker Jordan Stout's game-winning attempt might have been good from 53 yards instead of short from 57.
"There's a lot of plays throughout the game that we should have done differently," Franklin said.
Afterward, Wade said the whole game was "still a blur," which likely was the case on the flight home. Teams that outgain opponents by 277 yards, post 11 more first downs and hold a 20-minute edge in time of possession normally don't lose. Unless they make a lot of mistakes.
With Ohio State looming, there's plenty to fix. Where to start? Cornerback Joey Porter Jr. had a few ideas.
"We're going to have a chip on our shoulders next week," he said. "We aren't going to have our heads down. We know what we need to do to continue the season and that's what we're going to do. We're not done."
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