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FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2017
11-12:30 P.M. RACKHAM AUDITORIUM
4B — October 23, 2017
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
SportsMonday
Offenses a mismatch in State College
STATE COLLEGE — It was the
impossible test waiting to happen.
Coming into a matchup against
No. 2 Penn State, the No. 19 Michi-
gan football team knew what it
needed to do. Its top-ranked defense
would likely be canceled out by the
Nittany Lions’ ninth-ranked unit, so
it would be up to its offense to play
up to par with Penn State’s.
But
matching
the
offensive
firepower of quarterback Trace
McSorley and running back Saquon
Barkley is a tall task. Saturday night,
in a 42-13 loss, it proved to be too
much to ask.
The Nittany Lions entered the
game averaging 39.7 points per
game, while the Wolverines were
averaging 27.2. Fifth-year senior
quarterback John O’Korn and
junior running back Karan Higdon
needed to lead the effort in closing
the gap, but when Penn State hit
them, Michigan couldn’t answer
back.
The opening five minutes were a
microcosm of the game as a whole.
The Nittany Lion offense scored
two touchdowns. The Wolverine
offense went three-and-out twice.
They both ran six plays, but to
completely different results.
On Penn State’s first drive,
McSorley completed a six-yard
pass and then Barkley took a direct
snap 69 yards into the end zone for
a touchdown.
On Michigan’s initial drive, Hig-
don rushed twice for three yards
before O’Korn was sacked for a loss
of five.
For the Nittany Lions’ second
act, Barkley rushed for five yards,
McSorley rushed for 23, McSorley
threw for 35 and Barkley ran the last
15 for another score.
For the Wolverines’ follow-up,
Higdon rushed twice for three
yards again before O’Korn complet-
ed a pass for a loss of six.
Where Penn State looked explo-
sive, Michigan looked static. If it
weren’t for a momentum-stopping
interception from sophomore cor-
nerback David Long, the Nittany
Lions may have kept the ball rolling
and the Wolverines may never have
found life.
“I thought their offense played
extremely well. Understatement,”
said Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh.
“They were hitting on all cylinders.”
Michigan responded to the pick
with a renewed sense of vigor, scor-
ing 13 unanswered points in the sec-
ond quarter.
On the first scoring drive, O’Korn
threw for 21 yards and rushed for 12,
while Higdon rushed for 12 and the
touchdown.
On the second, O’Korn passed
for 41 yards and rushed for 14, while
fifth-year senior running back Ty
Isaac rushed for 11 and the score.
With 1:45 left in the first half,
the Wolverines had managed to cut
their deficit to 14-13. It looked like
Michigan’s offense could go toe-to-
toe with Penn State’s despite the
early shot to the face.
But in a mere 52 seconds, McSor-
ley and Barkley showed why the
Nittany Lions are on a level the Wol-
verines haven’t reached.
McSorley completed a 12-yard
pass and then a 36-yard bomb. Bar-
kley ran for another nine. And then
McSorley sealed the deal with a
17-yard completion and a three-yard
rush up the middle.
With 53 seconds left in the half,
Penn State stretched its lead back
out to eight. Michigan didn’t score
again Saturday.
“To me, that was the biggest
thing,” O’Korn said. “They made the
big plays and we didn’t.”
After the Wolverines went three
and out again, the Nittany Lions
got the ball back with six seconds
left. They had enough time to take
a deep shot at the end zone. With
the success of their big plays on the
night, it would have been expected
for them to at least try.
They took a knee instead. Michi-
gan didn’t give them a reason why
they shouldn’t.
Penn State went on to score a
total of 42 points, which is the most
the Wolverine defense has given
up under coordinator Don Brown.
After the game, fifth-year senior
linebacker Mike McCray spoke on
behalf on his unit. He was at a loss
for words.
“(It was) pretty much everything
we’ve seen,” he said. “They had a
great scheme.”
That pretty much said it all.
Michigan’s defense couldn’t contain
the Nittany Lions’ offense, despite
knowing what was coming. But
just as importantly, the Wolverines’
offense couldn’t match up with it.
Michigan brought a knife to a
gun fight, and after taking mul-
tiple shots, the Wolverines simply
couldn’t get up.
ZOEY HOLMSTROM/Daily
Fifth-year senior quarterback John O’Korn finished with 166 yards Saturday.
BETELHEM ASHAME
Managing Sports Editor
Barkley deserves the Heisman
S
TATE COLLEGE —
Beaver Stadium trembled
as fireworks burst over
Happy Valley. A regular season
game with a Super Bowl
atmosphere.
The
night was
fit for a
superstar,
and the
superstar
that
delivered
was the one
everyone
expected.
Penn
State running back Saquon
Barkley carved up the nation’s
No. 1 defense in the Nittany
Lions’ 42-13 win, validating
his case as the best player in
college football.
He didn’t set a career high
in rushing yards, receiving
yards or touchdowns, but
he did something that no
other tailback could — run
successfully against Michigan.
Nobody had run like him
against the Wolverines. Prior
to Saturday, not a single player
on any of Michigan’s previous
six opponents had over 100
rushing yards, and as a unit,
the defense gave up an average
of just 85 rushing yards per
game.
Barkley alone surpassed that
in the first quarter.
“A lot of running backs
were able to get open (against
Michigan), but none were able
to finish it or find a way to get
into the end zone,” Barkley
said. “That’s something I took
ownership of this week.”
He called it a “heavyweight
fight.” Sometimes Michigan’s
defense would get the stop,
and other times Barkley would
punch back for a short gain.
When either side could land a
knockout punch, they had to
take it.
Barkley accepted short
gains all game long. Four-yard
rushes, two-yard rushes and
even negative-yard rushes. But
when he got the chance to split
the gap and break through, he
pounced.
On the second play of
Penn State’s opening drive,
Barkley lined up for a direct
snap and ran the ball 69 yards
straight into the end zone. He
burned Michigan’s secondary,
outrunning the linebackers, the
cornerbacks and the safeties.
Nobody could catch Saquon
Barkley.
It was one of those plays
that will be on the highlight
reel when Barkley suits up
for the Heisman ceremony in
December.
“We haven’t seen that on
film,” said fifth-year senior
linebacker Mike McCray about
the direct snap to Barkley.
“He’s a great player, got to give
a lot of credit to him.”
And four minutes later, on
the Nittany Lions’ next drive,
he caught an option pitch and
dashed to the goal line again to
give Penn State a 14-point lead.
“The back is really good,
as advertised,” Harbaugh
said of Barkley. “(Penn State)
hit us on quite a few plays
we’ve defensed well this year.
Their execution was really
good tonight, right from the
beginning.”
The Wolverines have
stopped mobile quarterbacks
and quality running backs
already. Other teams
simply couldn’t run as fast
as Michigan. Sophomore
linebacker Devin Bush prides
himself on his speed, and
he’s one of the Big Ten’s best
linebackers because of it. But
not even Bush could keep up
with Barkley.
On his 69-yard touchdown
run, Barkley clocked in at 22.9
miles per hour. He ran to the
end zone faster than a high-
schooler in his first Drivers Ed
class.
But it’s not only Barkley’s
speed. He’s got all the right
mental components, too.
In the second quarter,
Barkley was wide open on a
route and had eyes for the end
zone, but when the pass came
in his direction, he couldn’t
hold on. A completion would
have put the Nittany Lions up
21-0, but for just one moment,
he had lost focus.
And that’s the play Barkley
said will stick with him most
from this game.
Not either of his rushing
touchdowns, and not the
juggled receiving touchdown
in the third quarter. He doesn’t
worry about the highlights. He
remembers the plays where he
could’ve done better.
“Sometimes I overthink and
put myself in bad situations. … I
was thinking ‘score,’ ” he said.
“It humbles you again. Makes
you realize that you got to put a
little more work in and find the
way to make those plays.”
Combine Barkley’s
workhorse mentality with his
blistering speed, and you’ve
got one hell of a football player.
There aren’t many players like
Saquon Barkley, so when he
gets on the field, make sure to
be watching.
But don’t blink. You might
miss him.
Janes can be reached
on Twitter @tedjanes7.
TED
JANES
AMELIA CACCHIONE/Daily
Penn State running back Saquon Barkley built on his Heisman campaign with 108 yards and two touchdowns Saturday.
FOOTBALL
The good, the bad and
the ugly: Penn State
For all of the theatrics that
came with Saturday night’s contest
in Beaver Stadium, No. 2 Penn
State’s performance still may have
warranted more.
Michigan
was
punched
in
the
mouth
from
the
get-go,
Saquon Barkley looked every bit a
Heisman winner and the Nittany
Lions provided a very convincing
argument that their standing among
the nation’s best is warranted.
The Wolverines, on the other
hand, had little to nothing to show
for a trip to State College and are
now faced with the discouraging
task of finishing a season void of
much meaning.
The Daily breaks down the good,
the bad and the ugly from Saturday’s
42-13 blowout:
The good
Well, the Nittany Lions didn’t get
their shame-inducing touchdown.
And that’s about it.
With four seconds left in the
game, Penn State had the ball on
Michigan’s six-yard line. James
Franklin could have told his team to
take a knee and ride quietly into the
night with a 29-point lead.
Instead,
the
Nittany
Lions
sideline pleaded for a chance to
put an exclamation point on the
blowout. Penn State got the snap
off in time, and sophomore running
back Miles Sanders was given the
ball with a chance to run up the
score and rub salt in Michigan’s
wound.
Thanks to Khaleke Hudson and
Michael Dwumfour, Sanders was
tackled for a four-yard loss and a
game that had long been over finally
came to a close.
The bad
Fifth-year senior quarterback
John O’Korn didn’t mince words.
“The fake love’s gone,” he said.
“There’s no bandwagon. It’s us.
That’s what we want. Whether
we’re doing great or bad, it’s just
all about us, and from here on out,
that’s what it’s going to be about.”
O’Korn couldn’t be more right.
For
four
weeks,
Michigan
convinced its fan base that a year
intended for rebuilding could turn
into something special. A loss to
Michigan State dented that outlook.
And last night’s thrashing in State
College
undoubtedly
brought
everyone back to reality.
Michigan’s
College
Football
Playoff hopes are dead. A Big Ten
championship would be an act of
divine intervention.
It seemed likely that, eventually,
the Wolverines would lose their
second conference game. But the
loss of their preseason goals stings
a lot more given that it came in just
week seven.
The Wolverines have five games
left on their schedule, and they’ll
be playing for nothing more than
pride.
The ugly
What was once ranked as the No.
1 defense in the nation was battered,
bruised and bludgeoned Saturday
night.
It
started
with
a
69-yard
touchdown run by Saquon Barkley
on the second play of a game. It
ended with quarterback Trace
McSorley trotting nine yards into
the end zone before Franklin put in
the reserves.
And there was plenty of damage
done in between. Barkley totaled
108 yards and two touchdowns,
McSorley tore apart the Wolverines’
secondary to the tune of 10.8 yards
per attempt and wide receiver
DaeSean Hamilton posted a 115-
yard performance.
The Nittany Lions became the
first team to score 42 points against
Michigan since Ohio State did so in
2015, and the Wolverines gave up
506 yards on the night.
McSorley said that the Nittany
Lions
took
Michigan’s
man
coverage as a challenge. Saturday
night, that certainly appeared to be
the case.
KEVIN SANTO
Managing Sports Editor