Blue White Illustrated

PLAYER OF THE GAME Running back Cole Chiappialle fulfilled every bit of the Blue-White Game's longstanding tradi- tion of producing a breakout perform- ance by an unheralded player. With nine carries for 63 yards and a pair of touch- downs, he easily cemented himself as the player of the game while securing another opportunity to impress in pre- season camp. PLAY OF THE GAME James Franklin didn't mind mixing it up. On an end-around to wideout Geno Lewis, the White defense found itself totally out of position as Matt Zanellato stood wide open to haul in Lewis's trick pass. The play went for 56 yards and a touchdown. BEST RUN Chiappialle had a few on the afternoon, frequently taking direct snaps up the middle, including a 1-yard touchdown late in the second quarter. Just a few plays later, he was even more impressive, taking a 23-yard run down the left sideline to give the Blue team a 17-0 lead going into the half. BEST SACK Safety Ryan Keiser picked up where his 2013 season left off, picking off D.J. Crook's third-and-long pass at the end of the second quarter and re- turning it deep into White's own terri- tory. The interception set up Chiappialle's touchdown run just one play later. BEST SACK Though there were rules in place to keep the quarterbacks pro- tected, defensive end Carl Nassib was coming strong enough at O'Connor to knock the true freshman right onto his backside for a 5-yard loss late in the first quarter. BEST HIT Again, though Penn State's QBs weren't supposed to be tossed around, the combination of Deion Barnes and C.J. Olaniyan met halfway at Crook in the second quarter for a 7-yard sack. BEST EFFORT A pass in the third quarter was tipped, then intercepted by corner- back Trevor Williams, who returned it 34 yards deep into White territory. BEST KICK Punter Chris Gulla looked to be of slight build, but his punts – under no pressure, of course – offered plenty of boom, including a 50-yarder early in the first quarter. BEST DECISION The game-changer oc- curred when the third and fourth quar- ters lasted only 10 minutes and featured a running clock. MOST TELLING MOMENT Hackenberg dropped back to pass on third-and-16 midway through the first quarter, found Lewis streaking down the middle of the field, and aired one out a good 50 yards downfield. But the connection was just slightly off as Lewis's outstretched arms and he couldn't pull in the pass. A quarter later, O'Connor threw a pass to Zanellato that suffered the same fate. –NATE BAUER JUDGMENT CALLS The best and the rest from the Nittany Lions' spring scrimmage A P R I L 1 2 , 2 0 1 4 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M 4

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