Blue White Illustrated

PLAYER OF THE GAME Amid uncer- tainty as to whether he would even play, Michigan State's Connor Cook put together one of his best perform- ances of the season. He completed 19 of 26 passes for 248 yards and three touchdowns against a Penn State de- fensive line that couldn't get to him, and a secondary that couldn't figure him out. PLAY OF THE GAMEThe Spartans were somewhat limited in the first half, but a key series of third-down completions in the third quarter was capped by Josiah Price's 6-yard touchdown catch to take a commanding 34-10 lead. BEST PASSCook did what Cook does, all night long. Lulling the Nittany Lions to sleep, seemingly 5 yards at a time, he hit a play-action pass to a wide-open R.J. Shelton to put the hosts ahead 6-0 early at Spartan Stadium. Safety Marcus Allen bit badly on the well-executed play-fake. WORST PASSRiding some confidence in the game's first possession, Christian Hackenberg took a shot downfield to Geno Lewis, but Lewis wasn't there. Spartans defensive back Arjen Colquhoun picked off the pass to end the Nittany Lions' early momentum. BEST RUN Penn State's Saquon Barkley isn't exactly a bruiser, but his 14-yard carry at the end of the first quarter might have been one of his most impressive of the season. Seemingly stuffed twice, Barkley juked to his right twice, and managed to escape the grip of MSU safety Demetrious Cox to push down to the 4-yard line. BEST CATCHSure, Chris Godwin didn't have to do much to pull in his 8- yard touchdown reception at the end of the first half, but the play gets a nod here anyway. Why? It was Hacken- berg's 47th career TD pass, moving him into first place all-time at Penn State. He would make another in the fourth quarter. WORST DROPPenn State senior tight end Kyle Carter's second-quarter fum- ble could not have possibly gone any worse for the Nittany Lions. Appearing to pick up a first down with the Lions' offense driving, Carter put the ball on the turf and into the hands of Demetri- ous Cox, who returned it 77 yards for a Michigan State TD. BEST SACKIt was bound to happen sooner or later. For Hackenberg, the Spartans finally had a confab in the Nittany Lion backfield in the second quarter, bringing six with Malik Mc- Dowell given the honors of putting the Penn State QB on his backside. The Nittany Lions, meanwhile, were unable to get to Cook. It was the first time since the 2013 season that Penn State was held without a sack. BEST EFFORTAaron Burbridge's 29- yard third-quarter touchdown was un- real. Though a questionable ruling said he was forced out of bounds, Burbridge moved back onto the field, made the re- ception from Cook's pass, spin- bounced off a pair of Nittany Lion defenders, burst toward the goal line and capped the highlight-reel play with a leaping dive into the end zone. It was the best effort in this game, and maybe of the season for a Nittany Lion oppo- nent. BEST KICKPenn State punter Daniel Pasquariello had one of his best efforts of the season in the first quarter on Sat- urday, landing his midfield punt at the Spartan 5-yard line to pin them deep with Grant Haley in place to down the ball. BEST RETURNAfter Cox picked up Carter's fumble at his own 23-yard line, there was little guarantee he could do much more than advance the ball slightly to set up Michigan State's ensu- ing possession. Instead, he weaved in and out of traffic, receiving a key block on Hackenberg to spring the rest of the way for a 77-yard touchdown return. WORST DECISIONThe Nittany Lions might have considered sitting on the ball early in the third quarter, trailing 41-16. Instead, a third-and-15 dump pass was tipped by Shilique Calhoun, intercepted by McDowell, and returned 13 yards for a touchdown to put the Spartans ahead 48-16. MOST TELLING MOMENTThe Nittany Lions couldn't have asked for a better start to the second half, as they imme- diately forced the Spartans into third- and-long. Unable to generate pressure on Cook, however, the Lions found themselves in familiar troubled waters when the veteran QB found Burbridge for a first-down completion in front of John Reid. The Spartans would capital- ize on the lapse, taking a 27-10 advan- tage just five plays later on Burbridge's stunning 29-yard TD. – NATE BAUER JUDGMENT CALLS The best and the rest from the Lions' loss to Michigan State N O V E M B E R 2 8 , 2 0 1 5 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . c O M 4 BEST RUN Barkley leaps over a Spartan de- fender during the Lions' game at MSU. Photo by Steve Manuel

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