Nittany Lions Fall to Maryland on Last Minute Field Goal, 20-19

Box Score

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Senior kickerSam Ficken(Valparaiso, Ind.) connected on four field goals, including three from beyond 46 yards, and the Penn State defense held Maryland to 196 yards of total offense, but Brad Craddock's 43-yard field goal to lifted the Terps to a 20-19 win over the Nittany Lions. With the effort, Ficken moves into a tie for third on Penn State's career field goals list with 47 (Travis Forney; 1996-99).

The Penn State defense was stellar yet again, holding Maryland to just 35 net rushing yards, recording six sacks and three turnovers. FreshmanMarcus Allen(Upper Marlboro, Md.) posted his second-straight double-digit tackle performance with 11 stops, including his first career sack for an 11-yard loss. SeniorMike Hull(Canonsburg, Pa.) continued his solid play with nine tackles, including five solo, and a fumble recovery, whileAustin Johnson(Galloway, N.J.) added six tackles with a six-yard sack.Deion Barnes(Philadelphia, Pa.) also stood out with two sacks and a forced fumble.

Redshirt-freshman receiverDaeSean Hamilton(Fredericksburg, Va.) had five catches for 42 yards. With his performance, Hamilton breaks the Penn State freshman season receiving yardage record set by Deon Bulter (691) in 2005. Hamilton has 728 receiving yards on the season.

Geno Lewis(Wilkes-Barre, Pa.) added five catches for a team-best 54 yards on the day, whileAkeel Lynch(Toronto, Ontario) ran for 51 yards.Jesse James(Glassport, Pa.) scored the lone touchdown for the Nittany Lions with an eight-yard grab. He snagged five catches for 48 yards, including a long of 20 yards.

The Nittany Lion offense came out of the gates strong with a 14-yard return byGrant Haley(Atlanta, Ga.) on the kickoff.Christian Hackenberg(Palmyra, Va.) found a rhythm as he completed 5-of-6 pass attempts to lead Penn State on a nine-play, 36-yard drive that resulted in a 47-yard field goal by Ficken for the 3-0 lead with 11 minutes left in the opening half.

The teams exchanged possession over the next 10 minutes until Maryland took advantage of good starting field position at the Penn State 43 to put together an eight-play 43-yard drive that ended with a two-yard touchdown pass from C.J. Brown to P.J. Gallo to give the Terps a 7-3 lead with 13:52 left in the second quarter.

Neither team would score on their next two opportunities until the Nittany Lions started their drive on their own 43. Penn State went to the run game to move the ball to the Maryland 8-yard line and produce a 25-yard Ficken field goal to cut the deficit to one point (7-6) with five minutes left in the first half. Lynch rushed six times for 19 yards, whileBill Belton(Sicklerville, N.J.) added two rushes for nine markers.

The Penn State defense came out strong on the ensuing Maryland possession, forcing a three-and-out that included a seven-yard sack for Barnes. The Nittany Lions took over on the Maryland 45 and got an eight-yard run from Belton and a nine-yard catch by Hamilton to advance the ball to the Maryland 29. Ficken converted on a 46-yard field goal, his third of the game and second from beyond 46 yards, to give Penn State the 9-7 lead with 1:30 left in the second quarter.

On Maryland's first play from scrimmage,Trevor Williams(Baltimore, Md.) stripped Brandon Ross and Hull recovered the fumble at the Terps' 32-yard line. It was the first forced fumble of Williams' career. However, Hackenberg fumbled to give Maryland the ball with 1:07 left in the second quarter. The Nittany Lion defense forced a three-and-out to give the Penn State offense a final possession of the half, but they were unable to convert the opportunity into any points.

Neither team could sustain offensive momentum to start the second half.Anthony Zettel(West Branch, Mich.) hit Wes Brown in the backfield and forced a fumble, which was recovered byC.J. Olaniyan(Warren, Mich.) to give the Nittany Lions the ball at their own 49-yard line. Hackenberg marched the Nittany Lion offense down the field, going 6-for-6 for 54 yards and found James for an eight-yard touchdown catch to extend Penn State's lead to 16-7 with 3:18 left in the third quarter. Hamilton nabbed two passes for 27 yards andKyle Carter(Bear, Del.) had two catches for 21 yards during the eight-play, 51-yard drive.

The Terrapins responded with a drive of their own, going seven plays for 48 yards down to the Penn State one before settling for a 25-yard field goal to make it a 16-10 Penn State lead with 13:11 remaining in the game.

On the ensuing kickoff, Haley fumbled and recovered by the Terps at the Penn State 24. The Nittany Lion defense pushed Maryland back with a 10-yard sack by Johnson on the opening play of the drive. However, Brown hit Amba Etta-Tawo for a 25-yard gain and then found Stefon Diggs for an eight-yard catch to put the Terps on the endzone's doorstep. On the next play, Wes Brown punched it in from the half-yard line to give Maryland the 17-16 lead with 11:30 left in the fourth quarter.

Following an exchange of possessions, the Penn State offense took the field with 9:39 on the clock. After an illegal procedure penalty, Hackenberg rushed for a career-long 17-yard gain for a first down near midfield. The Nittany Lions retreated on their next two plays to the Penn State 35. On third-and-23 when Hackenberg found Lewis for a 33-yard gain to the Maryland 32. Penn State advanced the ball one yard before Ficken hit his fourth field goal of the day from 48 yards with 6:52 remaining to give the Nittany Lions a 19-17 lead.

Penn State was forced to punt with 1:06 on the clock and Diggs returned the ball to the Penn State 42. The Terps got a pass from C.J. Brown to Wes Brown for a 13-yard gain on first down and followed that up with a pair of two-yard runs by Wes Brown to set up a 43-yard field goal by Craddock to give Maryland the 20-19 lead.

The Nittany Lions had one last opportunity, but were unable to record a first down and turned the ball over on downs to the Terps.

The Nittany Lions visit Indiana on Saturday at noon on the Big Ten Network. Penn State returns to Beaver Stadium to face Temple on Saturday, Nov. 15. Time and television arrangements will be announced at a later date. Tickets are available by calling 1-800-NITTANY, weekdays from 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

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