JOIN US FOR THE CLIMATE CHANGE SUMMIT, which will feature seven rising star panelists to spark a conversation and raise awareness about climate change. PANELISTS INCLUDE: • Ben Bunker: CEO, Global BrightLight Foundation • Tara Houska: Attorney and Director, Honor the Earth • Angel Hsu: Director, Yale Data-Driven Environmental Solutions Group • Ahmina Maxey: North American Coordinator, Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA) • Kait Parker: Meteorologist, Weather.com and ABC News • Varun Sivaram: Douglas Dillon Fellow and Acting Director, Council of Foreign Relations • Sean A. Watkins: Community Manager, The Solutions Project For more information visit seas.umich.edu 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