Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1525333
S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 4 19 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M FIVE YEARS AGO, 2019 Penn State's four-game se- ries against Pitt came to a fit- tingly hard-fought end when the 13th-ranked Nittany Lions held off the Panthers, 17-10, on Sept. 14 at Beaver Stadium. Journey Brown rushed for 109 yards, but it was the de- fense that shined in the game's defining moment. With Pitt just a yard away from tying the score in the final minutes, Cam Brown pressured Kenny Pick- ett into throwing incomple- tions on first and third down, and fellow linebacker Jesse Luketa stopped Pickett short of the end zone on a second- down keeper. Pitt kicker Alex Kessman bounced a 19-yard field goal attempt off the left upright, and Penn State held on for the win despite allowing Pickett, a future first-round draft pick of the Pitts- burgh Steelers, to throw for 372 yards. The Nittany Lions ended up winning the last three games of the four-game series between the two former Eastern independent rivals, and coach James Franklin was pleased with that outcome. "We're happy to be 3-1 in this series," he said, "and we're happy to be 1-0 [this week]." While that was undoubtedly true, the Lions' one loss — a 42-39 setback at Heinz Field in 2016 — was haunting in retro- spect. The Lions went on to win the Big Ten title that year, and had they managed to rally past the Panthers, as they very nearly did, they would likely have earned a spot in the College Football Playoff. 10 YEARS AGO, 2014 The Franklin era started about as well as anyone could have realistically hoped, given the many hardships that the first- year coach inherited due to the linger- ing impact of the NCAA's sanctions. The Lions won their first four games under the new coach, and while none of those victories were truly eye-opening, this was an era in which all wins were to be treasured. That included a narrow 13-10 escape in the Lions' Big Ten opener at Rutgers on Sept. 13. It was the Scarlet Knights' first conference game as Big Ten mem- bers, and they would have liked nothing more than to earn their inaugural victory against their once-and-future border rival. But Penn State intercepted Rutgers quarterback Gary Nova five times, and tailback Bill Belton supplied the winning points when he scored on a 5-yard run with 1:13 to play. The Nittany Lions' fast start gave rise to speculation that they might be back in the Top 25 before too long. Northwest- ern put an end to those hopes two weeks later with a 29-6 rout in Beaver Stadium, but even so, it had been a good month for Penn State. In addition to winning four of their first five games, the Lions had their bowl ban and scholarship penalty rescinded by the NCAA on Sept. 8, set- ting the stage for a return to the national spotlight two years later. 25 YEARS AGO, 1999 It was a muggy mid-Sep- tember afternoon in the Or- ange Bowl, and Penn State seemed to be fading amid the oppressive heat and hu- midity. The third-ranked Nittany Lions had allowed a 14-point third-quarter lead over No. 8 Miami to slip away. Now, with less than two minutes left to play, the Hurricanes were about to finish off the visitors. The Canes hadn't lost to a Big Ten opponent in 15 years and appeared poised to extend that streak when their defense took the field with Penn State trailing 23-20 and needing 79 yards to retake the lead. The Lions still had some fight left in them, though. On the first play of the possession, in a stunning reversal of fortune, Chafie Fields beat future first- round draft pick Mike Rumph, and quarterback Kevin Thomp- son dropped a perfect pass into the speedy receiver's hands at midfield. After Rumph fell to the turf trying to make an ankle tackle, Fields loped down the left sideline for the decisive touchdown in a 27-23 vic- tory. Miami players could scarcely believe how quickly the game's momentum had shifted against them. Just before Fields' score, the Hurricanes had tried to convert on fourth-and-2 in the hope of taking a two-score lead into the final minute but had been stuffed by PSU's defense, giving the Lions one last shot. "We had the taste in our mouths," Mi- ami cornerback Leonard Myers said. "And then it was gone." That opportunity had been snuffed out by a Penn State team that, as Joe Paterno acknowledged afterward, got "a little lucky." Still, there was nothing lucky about Fields' exhilarating score. Said the veteran wideout, "Every time I get the ball, I've got a chance to make a big play." — Matt Herb This Month In Penn State Athletics History TixManJim@gmail.com www.TixManJim.com at Journey Brown rushed for 109 yards in Penn State's 17-10 victory over Pitt on Sept. 14, 2019. Eighty-five of those yards came on a single first-quarter carry. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL