Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1546586
6 2 O C T O B E R 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 H istory is full of hidden turning points, the kind of moments that may go unappreciated at first but are eventually revealed to be significant. Ten years ago, early in the second half of a game against Minnesota that drew little notice beyond the two teams' fan bases, Penn State arrived at one of those fateful junctures. The October weather was gray, gloomy and wet, mirroring the mood in Beaver Stadium with the Nittany Lions trail- ing the Gophers 13-3 about five minutes into the second half. Coming off a 49- 10 drubbing at Michigan a week earlier, Penn State was nearly as underwhelming against Minnesota as it had been in Ann Arbor. The Lions had fallen short on all 7 of their third-down attempts in the first half, and now they faced third-and-10 at their own 20-yard line. "They're out of sorts right now," BTN analyst Chuck Long said just be- fore quarterback Trace McSorley took the shotgun snap. "They're way out of rhythm." McSorley stepped toward the line of scrimmage as the pass rush closed in on him, then threw over the middle to receiver Irvin Charles at midfield. This time, the Lions' re-engineered offense was in rhythm. Covered by safety Ad- ekunle Ayinde, Charles slipped out of an attempted arm tackle and took off. Four Gophers gave chase, but the lanky redshirt freshman wideout had a head start and just kept chugging toward the end zone. When Charles crossed the goal line, the nearest Minnesota defender was 5 yards behind him. It was an offensive thunderclap that changed the game. In so doing, it changed the season and, ul- timately, the trajectory of the program as a whole. After four years of struggle, the sanction-ridden Nittany Lions were suddenly, stunningly, back in business. Competitive Realities It's important to understand the context in which Charles' touchdown occurred. Four days before the Lions welcomed Minnesota, then-athletics di- rector Sandy Barbour had appeared at a promotional event arranged by the Blair County Chamber of Commerce. When a reporter from the Altoona Mirror asked Charles' 80-yard touchdown catch against Minnesota sparked a turnaround that produced the first of nine consecutive victories during the 2016 season. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL H I S T O R Y ONE SHINING MOMENT Wide receiver Irvin Charles changed the course of the Nittany Lions' 2016 season, and perhaps much more M AT T H E R B | M AT T. H E R B @ O N 3 . C O M