Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1541990
6 2 J A N U A R Y 2 0 2 6 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M with Boston College. "You're an 18-, 19-, 20-, 21-year-old young man, and you get to spend a week in Ireland and a week in New York City in the same year." That the game was being played in The House That Ruth Built (or at least its modern facsimile) was an entertain- ing novelty. Penn State and its fans were used to heading south or west, but New York offered an entirely different back- drop. A few days before the game, a con- tingent of players visited the New York Stock Exchange, and kicker Sam Ficken rang the opening bell. At the stadium, Ficken got to use the locker that had previously belonged to Yankees legend Derek Jeter. It was pure happenstance, but it didn't go unnoticed by Ficken's teammates. Said the senior kicker, "As soon as I was put in Jeter's locker, they were like, 'Dude, you're going to kick the game-winner.'" A Dramatic Finish Penn State and Boston College hadn't met since 2004, but the two teams had played frequently during the heyday of the Eastern Independent era. The one- off resumption of their rivalry turned out to be one of the more entertaining clashes of the 2014 postseason. PSU looked like a dif- ferent team than it had in the regular season. Saddled with a sanction- depleted line, the offense had struggled throughout Franklin's debut cam- paign, but a stalwart de- fense had held opponents to just 17.6 points per game, keeping the Lions competitive. Against the Eagles, that formula was inverted. Suddenly, it was the defense that found itself struggling and the of- fense that came to the rescue. Quarter- back Christian Hackenberg rekindled memories of his first two seasons un- der former coach Bill O'Brien, com- pleting 34 of 50 passes for 371 yards and 4 touchdowns. Freshman receiver Chris Godwin showed out, too, total- ing 140 yards and a touchdown on 7 catches. Boston College led 21-7 late in the third quarter and was up 24-21 with 2:10 remaining in the fourth. But Hacken- berg drove the Lions 49 yards on their final possession of regulation, with Ficken hitting a 44-yard field goal in the closing seconds to send the game to overtime. The Eagles had the ball first in the extra session and scored on a 21-yard catch by David Dudeck. Moments later, though, Mike Knoll's plant foot slipped while he was attempting the extra point, and the kick fluttered wide right. Watching from the sideline, Ficken knew what that meant. He had delivered the victory over UCF in Penn State's season opener with a 36-yard field goal, and now he was one touchdown away from ending the season — and his career — with a successful PAT. "I was a little excited," he admitted. The Nittany Lions got that touch- down, with Hackenberg finding tight end Kyle Carter in the end zone for a 10-yard score on third-and-7. Now it was up to Ficken. He lined up for the extra point and calmly sent the ball through the uprights, giving Penn State a 31-30 win — its first bowl victory since the 2009 season. "I couldn't have written any better way to go out," Ficken said. "This team has worked so hard, fought through so much. To say that we made it to a bowl and then we won the bowl — it's pretty cool." Franklin, too, was effusive in the af- termath of the victory, the first of six postseason wins he would amass during his tenure in State College. "We started the season in dramatic fashion and ended the season in dra- matic fashion. We started in Dublin, Ireland, and ended in New York City," Franklin said. "Who could have drawn it up better than that? We persevered, we stuck together, and to me, that's who we are. The future is very, very bright here." The future was brighter than anyone could have imagined at the time, and it was set to arrive sur- prising quickly. Two years after their appearance at Yankee Stadium, the Li- ons were Big Ten cham- pions and were playing in the Rose Bowl. By contrast, Penn State's upcoming return to New York feels more like the end of something than the beginning. The current coaching staff is set for a thorough overhaul, and the roster is about to be dismantled via the transfer portal and graduation. Still, given the number of likely opt- outs, the Pinstripe Bowl could provide a glimpse at PSU's future. If it looks any- thing like it did on a chilly night in the Bronx 11 years ago, the Lions will have something to build on as they head into their new era. ■ Receiver Geno Lewis caught a 7-yard touchdown pass from Christian Hackenberg late in the third quarter to cut Boston College's lead to 21-14. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL "I couldn't have written any better way to go out. This team has worked so hard, fought through so much. To say that we made it to a bowl and then we won the bowl — it's pretty cool." S A M F I C K E N