Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1490816
F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 3 6 1 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M M icah Parsons might have summed it up best. Previewing the Dallas Cowboys' impending visit to San Francisco in the Divisional Round of the NFL playoffs, the second-year pro de- clared, "The bigger the stage, the bigger the player." Parsons was talking about the impact that he hoped to have on the Cowboys' matchup with the 49ers, but he could just as easily have been referring to the role that his alma mater was about to have on the course of the NFC champi- onship race. Parsons, a 2019 All-American at Penn State, was one of four Nittany Lions who took center stage in the Divisional Round. A two-time All-Pro and a contender for this season's Defensive Player of the Year award, Parsons was deployed both at linebacker and defensive end against San Francisco and finished the game with 4 tackles and a quarterback hit. Six days earlier in the Wild Card Round, he had a sack, 2 tackles for loss, 2 passes defended and 2 quarterback hits in the Cowboys' 31-14 win over Tampa Bay. And yet, he wasn't able to keep Dal- las in the hunt for its first Super Bowl appearance since the 1995 season. The Cowboys lost to the host Niners 19-12 on Jan. 23, bringing an end to a cam- paign in which Parsons ranked seventh in the league with 13.5 sacks. "I hurt for the guys, I hurt for the fans," the former Nittany Lion said afterward. "I hurt for myself. It just wasn't enough." One of the reasons Dallas came up short was because the oldest Penn State football alumnus currently playing in the NFL, kicker Robbie Gould, hit 4 field goals and a PAT and accounted for 13 of San Francisco's 19 points. An 18-year veteran who has played for the 49ers for the past six seasons, Gould has been automatic in the play- offs throughout his long career. Head- ing into the Niners' visit to Philadelphia for the NFC Championship Game, he hadn't missed in 28 postseason field goal attempts. On the other side of the NFC playoff bracket, two former Penn State running backs dueled in the Eagles' game against the New York Giants. Miles Sanders finished with 90 yards on 17 carries, part of a ground attack that gouged the Giants for 268 yards en route to a 38-7 victory on Jan. 21. One of Sanders' former teammates was in the opposite backfield. Saquon Barkley was looking to help the upset- minded Giants advance, but they fell behind by 4 touchdowns in the first half, and Barkley ended up getting only 9 carries. He nevertheless finished Linebacker Micah Parsons finished seventh in the league with 13.5 sacks as a second-year pro, but he wasn't able to propel the Cowboys to their first Super Bowl appearance since the 1995 season. PHOTO COURTESY DALLAS COWBOYS Former Nittany Lions Shine In NFC Playoffs M AT T H E R B | M AT T. H E R B @ O N 3 . C O M PSU IN THE PROS