Blue White Illustrated

PLAYER OF THE GAME Let's call this one what it was: a mauling. Rutgers scored just three points against a suffo- cating Penn State defense. Akeel Lynch and Saquon Barkley went for a com- bined 315 yards on 31 carries with three touchdowns, led by an offensive line that didn't give up a sack, again. The Lions' secondary had two huge inter- ceptions, their first of the season. And yes, punter Chris Gulla was outstand- ing. Choosing one wouldn't do justice for a complete team effort. PLAY OF THE GAMEFollowing Barkley's touchdown with time winding down in the first half, a series of five defensive plays and a 75-yard Akeel Lynch carry for a touchdown straight through a gutted Rutgers defense gave the Nittany Lions a huge 21-0 advan- tage going into the locker room. BEST PASSLeading 7-0 late in the second quarter, Christian Hackenberg delivered a perfect strike to DaeSean Hamilton in the middle of the field, let- ting the junior wideout do the rest for a 48-yard completion. WORST PASSWith Rutgers honing in on its first sack of the night, Hacken- berg unloaded a prayer that probably should have stayed in his pocket. In- stead of a Saeed Blacknall touchdown, Rutgers DB Anthony Cioffi made a pick, eliminating the Lions' shot at some fourth-quarter insurance points. BEST RUNBest run? How about a best reel for Barkley? The true freshman running back might not have broken off the big one, but he consistently made more with less than Penn State fans have seen out of a tailback in recent seasons. His carries late in the first half propelled the Lions to a crucial score, capped by his 15-yard weave for a touchdown. He was electric all night. BEST CATCHEarly in the second quar- ter, facing a third-and-3 at Rutgers' 17- yard line, Hackenberg put a hot one on Hamilton as the sophomore wideout found space in the middle of the field. Hamilton pulled in the tough one, set- ting up first-and-goal and Penn State's first touchdown just two plays later. WORST DROPJordan Lucas spent all off-season wanting to take advantage of his interception opportunities. At the end of the first half, he couldn't have asked for a better gift from Rutgers QB Chris Laviano, but the ball slipped out of his hands and harmlessly to the turf. BEST SACK It took until midway through the fourth quarter, but Carl Nassib finally got to Laviano for a sack, leading to a loss of 13 yards. BEST HITAfter leaving the Buffalo game due to injury, safety Marcus Allen wasted no time making his presence known Saturday night. Pinned deep in their own territory, Rutgers running back Paul James got absolutely lit up by the Lion sophomore in a wicked first quarter collision. Nassib's huge hit on Laviano early in the fourth quarter gets an honorable mention nod here. BEST EFFORTGrant Haley's intercep- tion to finish out the first half was the first for a Penn State defensive back on the 2015 season. Not to be outdone, true freshman corner John Reid followed with his own pick in the midst of a threatening Rutgers possession midway through the third quarter. BEST KICKGulla put a perfect pooch at the 2-yard line, and Jordan Lucas sealed the deal with a heads-up stop to put the Scarlet Knights' backs against the wall early in the first quarter. Gulla came through big all night. BEST RETURNReid's interception wasn't done at the point of the actual catch. Jetting away from Rutgers' of- fensive players, Reid brought back the pick 44 yards, all the way down to the Scarlet Knights' 35-yard line. BEST DECISIONThe stadium stripe- out that was probably met with a mostly luke-warm reception actually wound up looking pretty cool in person and, it seems, on television. WORST DECISION Two offensive plays seemed to stand out for the Nittany Lions in the third quarter. Primed off Reid's interception, Penn State threw an unsuccessful screen pass, followed by an ill-fated QB sneak to come away with a big missed opportunity with the Knights on their heels. – NATE BAUER JUDGMENT CALLS The best and the rest from the Nittany Lions' victory over Rutgers S E P T E m B E R 2 0 , 2 0 1 5 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . c O m 4 BEST SACK Carl Nas- sib brings Chris La- viano down for a sack in the second half of Penn State's win over Rutgers. Photo by Steve Manuel

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