Blue White Illustrated

It sure did – first time in 17 tries. And while the game may have been more competitive than the lopsided final score would indicate, it did expose some problems that PSU will need to resolve quickly if it hopes to follow up last year's success with another winning Big Ten season. Most worrisome was that Penn State struggled to establish the running game, netting only 70 yards against an Indiana defense that had been allowing nearly 250 per game. Those numbers look a little better without the sack yardage factored in, as well as the 31 yards in losses that the team accrued when the snap on a first-quarter field attempt skittered into the backfield. But they don't exactly look healthy. Said O'Brien, "We have to scheme up some better runs. We need to be more diverse in the running game, and it starts with coaching. It starts with me. I have to do a better job there." Penn State tried to mask the problems in the running game by calling on Christian Hackenberg to attempt 55 passes. He completed 30 for 340 yards and three touchdowns. But the afternoon's most decisive pass was the one he didn't complete. With Penn State facing fourthand-2 at its own 33-yard line and Indiana leading 28-17 with 11:30 to play, O'Brien kept his offense on the field in an all-ornothing gambit aimed at getting the Lions back into the game. It was a bold move, even for one of the conference's least risk-averse coaches, and it backfired when Hackenberg's pass to Matt Zanellato fell incomplete. Indiana took over and needed only two plays to score a touchdown for an all-but-insurmountable 35-17 lead. "I felt like we needed a touchdown," O'Brien said. "We had to make something happen. I was trying to manufacture a little bit of momentum there, and it didn't work out." The Hoosiers went into the game as the only Big Ten team never to have defeated Penn State, but they looked to pose a much more substantial threat this year. That's because Kevin Wilson, the former Oklahoma offensive coordinator who is in his third season in Bloomington, is starting to reap the benefits of the extreme makeover he gave the program in his first two seasons. The Hoosiers played 32 true and redo c t o b e R SCORING SUMMARY 1ST 3:05 IND Roundtree, Isiah 5-yard pass from Sudfeld, Nate (Ewald, Mitch kick) 4 plays, 66 yards, TOP 0:44.........................................................................0-7 2ND 9:16 PSU Robinson, Allen 46-yard pass from Hackenberg, Christian (Ficken, Sam kick) 4 plays, 56 yards, TOP 1:38.........................................................................7-7 6:43 IND Ewald, Mitch 24-yard field goal 8 plays, 68 yards, TOP 2:33.......................................................................10-7 0:00 IND Ewald, Mitch 27-yard field goal 11 plays, 65 yards, TOP 1:48....................................................................13-7 3RD 9:18 PSU Robinson, Allen 26-yard pass from Hackenberg, Christian (Ficken, Sam kick) 13 plays, 80 yards, TOP 3:28..................................................................14-13 7:56 IND Coleman, Tevin 44-yard run (Roberson, Tre rush) 5 plays, 75 yards, TOP 1:22....................................................................21-14 2:04 PSU Ficken, Sam 30-yard field goal 11 plays, 42 yards, TOP 4:02..................................................................21-17 4TH 14:10 IND Roberson, Tre 2-yard run (Ewald, Mitch kick) 11 plays, 75 yards, TOP 2:54..................................................................28-17 10:42 IND Hughes, Kofi 36-yard pass from Sudfeld, Nate (Ewald, Mitch kick) 2 plays, 33 yards, TOP 0:48....................................................................35-17 10:30 IND Roberson, Tre 9-yard run (Ewald, Mitch kick) 1 play, 9 yards, TOP 0:06........................................................................42-17 7:44 PSU Belton, Bill 14-yard pass from Hackenberg, Christian (Ficken, Sam kick) 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 2:46....................................................................42-24 5:40 IND Team safety............................................................................................44-24 shirt freshmen in 2011 – more than any team in the country – and 16 last season. They dressed only eight seniors in 2012 – fewest in the country. Wilson's overhaul has left the Hoosiers with a roster that is both young and experienced. They have only 10 seniors on this year's team, but their returning letterwinners have 384 career starts between them. What have those experienced underclassmen been doing? Catching a lot of passes, for one thing. Indiana went into its Big Ten opener having surpassed 300 passing yards in a school-record six consecutive games. It was ranked ninth in the country in total offense, eighth in passing offense and 11th in touchdowns. Against Penn State, the Hoosiers (3-2, 1-0) took a while to get rolling. But after allowing Penn State to go ahead, 14-13, on a 26-yard catch by Allen Robinson 5 , 2 0 1 3 2 early in the third quarter, they took control, outscoring Penn State 31-10 over the final 23 minutes. They finished with 486 yards of total offense, including 336 passing yards by sophomore quarterback Nate Sudfeld. If there was a bright spot for Penn State, it was Robinson, who was way too much for the Indiana secondary to handle. He finished with 12 catches and single-handedly accounted for more than half of Penn State's passing yards, finishing with 173. The Lions will certainly need him next Saturday against Michigan, and three weeks hence at Ohio State. The October schedule will make it difficult to get the Big Ten season turned around, but players are eager to try. Said Urschel, "We've got a resilient group of guys. We've just gotta go back on Monday, watch the film, learn from it and move it on. " b l u e w h i t e o n l i n e . c o m

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