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ranked last in the conference in rushing with an average of 108.2 yards per game, and Barkley was averaging only 76 yards. The Maryland game was an entirely dif- ferent story, however, as both Barkley (202 yards on 31 carries) and McSorley (81 yards on 18 carries) found ample running room. But even after that break- through performance, the Lions were 12th in the conference in rushing at 152.2 yards per game. If Barkley, who had 582 yards and eight touchdowns through six games, bears any responsibility for the team's diffi- culties, it's because he's been trying too hard to get things corrected, changing direction in the backfield in hope of making something out of nothing and, as a result, taking bigger losses than necessary. "Where Saquon, I think, could be a little bit better is by not trying to make every run an 80-yard touch- down," Franklin said. "You have to be willing to lower your shoulder and run people over or get in a gap and push the pile for four or five yards. I think he's been trying to make the extra cut every single run, and there will be a time and a place for that." He did have a couple of decisive touch- downs, scoring a 55-yarder help Penn State finish off Temple and a 25-yarder in overtime to beat Minnesota. So even in the team's first five games, the run- ning game had its moments. If it's going to have more of them in the second half of the season, it's going to need some help from the offensive line so that Barkley isn't having to dodge a would- be tackler or two just to get back to the line of scrimmage. GRADE B RECEIVER It's unfortunate that this group's most memorable moment came late in the Pitt game when DaeSean OFFENSIVE MVP Trace McSorley was second in the Big Ten in passing yards and was the Nittany Lions' second- leading rusher through six games. For a guy who had only seen action in seven games before the season started, he's looked remarkably self-assured, espe- cially in engineering the Nittany Lions' comeback win over Minnesota. Only a redshirt sophomore, McSorley gets the nod over Penn State's other offensive dynamo, Saquon Barkley. DEFENSIVE MVP A lot of the would- be contenders for this honor have been eliminated by injuries: Nyeem Wart- man-White… Brandon Bell… Jason Cabinda... the list goes on. The one player who has held steady while team- mates have come and gone around him has been junior free safety Marcus Allen. His reliability is one of the main reasons why he was ranked first in the Big Ten with 57 tackles through six games. Honorable mention nods go to cornerback John Reid and strong safety Malik Golden, who have been solid throughout the season. BEST PLAY Barkley found a seam on a draw play, broke into the open field and stepped inside of Minnesota defensive back Adekunle Ayinde for a 25-yard score. It was Penn State's first offensive play of overtime and the last play of the game, a walk-off touchdown run that sent the crowd into hysterics. BEST DECISION The Lions hadn't had much success running the ball on the Gophers during regulation. But if you keep giving the ball to Barkley, some- thing good is probably going to happen sooner or later. Of his 63 rushing yards against the Gophers, nearly half came on his final carry. The victory was a testa- ment not just to the sophomore running back but to the coaches' faith in his game-breaking potential. WORST DECISION Penn State got a little impatient at the end of the Pitt game and cost itself a chance for a comeback victory by throwing into the end zone on second-and-9 with just under three minutes left. A re- ceiver ran the wrong route, lead- ing safety Ryan Lewis into the end zone, where he was able to make the game-clinching in- terception for the Panthers. It was a huge missed opportunity for the Lions, as they were already on the edge of field goal range and would likely have had a chance to, at worst, tie the score had they been able to hold onto the ball. MOST TELLING STAT The Lions have made improvements across the board on offense, but if they hope to compete with the Big Ten's best teams, they still must improve their third- down conversion rate. Through six games, the Lions were converting only 27.4 percent, worst in the Big Ten and 123rd out of 128 teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision. MOMENT TO REMEMBER One of the turning points in the Minnesota game – and perhaps Penn State's season – was Irvin Charles' 80-yard catch- and-run for a third-quarter touch- down. The Lions were trailing 13-3 at the time, and their offense had seemingly flat-lined. But when Charles broke a tackle and bolted to the end zone after catching a third-and-10 strike from McSorley, it pumped a high-voltage electrical charge into both the Beaver Stadium crowd and the Nittany Lions themselves, and that energy carried over into the team's next game against Maryland, a 38-14 victory. MOMENT TO FORGET The Michigan game was a rout from start to finish, Penn State's third consecu- tive loss to the Wolverines and its most lopsided defeat in the 20-game history of the series. –M.H. H I G H S & L O W S • T H E B E S T A N D T H E R E S T F R O M T H E S E A S O N ' S F I R S T H A L F TRACE McSORLEY Bill Anderson

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