Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1322704
verybody knew that Penn State was going to attempt to run the ball during its visit to Rutgers earlier this month. The Scarlet Knights' coaches knew it, their players knew it, and if there had been any fans in SHI Stadium, they would have known it, too. The blustery field conditions all but demanded a ground-ori- ented game plan, and the Nittany Lions complied, sometimes handing the ball to running backs Devyn Ford and Keyvone Lee, other times sending quarterbacks Sean Clifford and Will Levis plunging into the line in the hope of finding an opening. The Lions' ball carriers understood that they weren't going to have the element of surprise working in their favor, but sometimes football is all about accepting difficult circumstances and finding a way to move forward. "You call a running play, you've got one choice," Ford said. "You've got to run the ball. Either you block it right and get some yards, or you don't." Sometimes life is like that, too. Ford, who totaled 65 yards and averaged 5.9 yards per carry in Penn State's 23-7 victory over Rutgers, has perhaps more than any other player on the roster embodied both the difficulties and the hard-won successes of this year's Nittany Lion football team. The sophomore running back saw his outlook change drastically on opening day when Noah Cain suffered a season-ending injury just a few plays into the game at Indiana, then he immediately got caught up in what was perhaps the most consequential moment of THE ONLY WAY OUT IS THROUGH E Perseverance, as embodied by sophomore running back Devyn Ford, has been the most important element in the Nittany Lions' difficult 2020 football season