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mentary playmakers, and their perform- ance on offense, coupled with another strong outing by the defense, resulted in a comfortable 31-7 victory in Evanston. "We came on the road against a tough opponent in a tough venue and found a way to get a win," coach James Franklin said. "I can't give our defense enough credit. I think a?er last season, the story- line was the exciting offense, and I'm pleased with our offense. We're scoring enough points to win, which is the most important thing. But our defense has been playing unbelievable. The only criticism I would have is that our twos went in late in the game and did not live up to the stan- dard we have overall. But it's hard to cri- tique. Our guys are playing really well." With the win, the Nittany Lions are now 6-0 for the first time since 2008. Here's a look at the good and the bad: THE GOOD • The defense did a great job of keeping the heat on Northwestern quarterback Clayton Thorson. The Wildcats have had trouble protecting Thorson this season, a problem that was especially acute dur- ing last week's game against Wisconsin, in which they surrendered eight sacks. They gave up four more against Penn State, one of which produced a fumble. And even when Thorson was able to get rid of the ball, he was frequently under pressure and off-target, completing only 19 of 36 attempts for 142 yards, with two interceptions and no touchdowns. "We're very experienced on defense, especially in the secondary," Franklin said. "We're faster [than in the past], no doubt about it. We're playing with some confidence, and I think we've got the best coaching staff in the country when you're talking about assistant coaches. It's a combination of all those things." • Penn State remains the only FBS team to have not given up any points in the first quarter this season. This time, the defense's success was due in large part to its opportunism. The Lions came up with two first-quarter takeaways on an inter- ception by Amani Oruwariye and a fum- ble recovery by Ryan Buchholz. They finished the game with three takeaways, adding a Christian Campbell intercep- tion on a Hail Mary pass at the end of the first half. • With Northwestern paying so much attention to Barkley, the Lions needed a strong game from Trace McSorley. The redshirt junior quarterback delivered. He completed 25 of 34 passes for 245 yards, with one passing touchdown, one rush- ing touchdown and no interceptions. "We're going to have to throw the ball," Franklin said. "I think at one point Trace completed 15 straight passes against what we call free access – so? coverage on the corners. We're in a situation where it's almost like [opponents have] got to pick their poison. I get it. People are going to try everything they can to not let Saquon Barkley beat you, but it creates a lot of opportunities for other guys." • Punter Blake Gillikin was once again one of Penn State's unsung heroes. Three Northwestern drives started inside its own 20-yard line, a major factor in its in- ability to get anything going on offense. • Mike Gesicki was back in action – and made Penn State's first catch of the game – a?er a week of uncertainty following his injury against Indiana. • Penn State committed only three penalties. That might not seem like an especially noteworthy factor in the game, and the Lions did have a touchdown erased in the fourth quarter when they were flagged for holding on a punt return by DeAndre Thompkins. So it's not like they were flawless. But they were nowhere near as sloppy as Northwestern. The Wildcats were flagged eight times for 74 yards, including a pair of targeting calls that cost them two of their defen- sive standouts – middle linebacker Paddy Fisher and safety Godwin Igwe- buike – for part of the second half (and for the first half of next week's game against Maryland). THE BAD • This performance will definitely not alleviate concerns about Penn State's running game heading into the most dif- ficult stretch of the season. The Nittany Lions' difficulties resurfaced in Evanston – and against another opponent that previously hadn't had great success against the run. A week a?er rushing for 39 yards against Indiana, the Lions man- aged only 95 against Northwestern, which had gone into the game ranked 11th in the Big Ten in run defense at 145 yards per game. • The Nittany Lions had some difficulty protecting McSorley. Northwestern got to him five times, and this was a defense that had totaled only six sacks in its first four games. "Obviously, you critique it. You'd like to not give up any sacks and you'd like to rush for more yards," SCORING SUMMARY 1ST 0:13 PSU Davis, Tyler 21-yard field goal 8 plays, 49 yards, TOP 3:25........................................................ 3-0 2ND 12:04 PSU Stevens, Tommy 10-yard pass from McSorley, Trace (Davis, Tyler kick) 5 plays, 52 yards, TOP 2:11........................................................ 10-0 3RD 9:33 PSU Barkley, Saquon 1-yard run (Davis, Tyler kick) 10 plays, 66 yards, TOP 4:21...................................................... 17-0 2:13 PSU Barkley, Saquon 53-yard run (Davis, Tyler kick) 4 plays, 71 yards, TOP 1:06....................................................... 24-0 4TH 8:52 PSU McSorley, Trace 5 -yard run (Davis, Tyler kick) 11 plays, 54 yards, TOP 3:53...................................................... 31-0 1:46 NU Alviti, Matt 1-yard run (Kuhbander, Charlie kick) 9 plays, 80 yards, TOP 2:19........................................................ 31-7 O c T O B E R 7 , 2 0 1 7 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . c O M 2

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