No. 7 Penn State Hosts No. 16 Michigan in White Out GameNo. 7 Penn State Hosts No. 16 Michigan in White Out Game
Mark Selders

No. 7 Penn State Hosts No. 16 Michigan in White Out Game

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  • OPENING KICK: One of the greatest spectacles in college football is set for Saturday night, as the No. 7 Nittany Lions host No. 16 Michigan in Beaver Stadium in the annual Penn State White Out game. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. on ABC.
  • COMING TO OUR CITY: ESPN's College GameDay Built by The Home Depot will air live from Penn State Saturday morning from 9 a.m. to noon. It is the show's fourth consecutive season airing from a Penn State game and third-straight airing from campus.
  • FINAL DOZEN: Penn State is one of 12 remaining undefeated teams in FBS. The Nittany Lions are 6-0 for the first time since 2017 and the sixth time in their Big Ten era. In 2017, Penn State improved to 7-0 with a White Out game win over Michigan.
  • THIS DEFENSE: Penn State (8.2 ppg) ranks second in scoring defense, not allowing more than 13 points in any one game this season. In three Big Ten games, Penn State has allowed just 19 total points. The Nittany Lions rank fourth in total defense (259.7 ypg) led by a stingy rushing defense allowing just 53.8 yards per game (3rd FBS) and a FBS-best 1.59 yards per rush.  Penn State has 27 sacks through six games to average 4.5 sacks per game (t-2nd in FBS). The pass rush is led by Yetur Gross-Matos and Shaka Toney (5.5 total, 0.92 spg), who rank tied for 16th in FBS. The Nittany Lions also rank third in the country with 9.8 tackles for loss per game.
  • BALANCED OFFENSE: Iowa snapped quarterback Sean Clifford's five-game streak of 200-yard passing games, but Penn State was able to rely on its ground game to earn the win, as freshman running back Noah Cain posted his second consecutive 100-yard rushing game. Penn State ranks in the Big Ten's top four in both rushing and passing offense and ranks second in total offense (465.3 ypg) overall.
  • THE OPPOSITION: Michigan is 5-1 this season, counting a win over No. 14 Iowa and a loss at now-No. 6 Wisconsin. The Wolverines have been particularly strong on defense, ranking in the top 15 nationally in both scoring (17.5 ppg) and total defense (283.3 ypg) and ninth in passing defense (160.5 ypg).

 
HEAD COACH JIM HARBAUGH

  • Jim Harbaugh is in his fifth season as head coach at Michigan. In three of his four seasons as the Michigan head coach, Harbaugh has guided the Wolverines to 10-win seasons.
  • From 2011-14, Harbaugh was head coach of the NFL's San Francisco 49ers. He led the franchise to the NFC Championship Game in each of his first three seasons and the 2012 Super Bowl.
  • From 2007-10, Harbaugh was the head coach at Stanford, leading the Cardinal to an Orange Bowl victory in 2010.
  • Harbaugh is the only coach to win both the AP NFL Coach of the Year (2011) and Woody Hayes Coach of the Year Award (2010).
  • Harbaugh played for five different organizations during his 15-year NFL career (1987-2001).
  • As a quarterback at Michigan, Harbaugh earned first-team All-America honors and finished third in the balloting for the Heisman Trophy in 1986.

 
SCOUTING THE WOLVERINES

  • Michigan is ranked No. 16 and ranks third in the Big Ten East Division with a 3-1 conference record. Overall, the Wolverines are 5-1 with their lone loss coming against now-No. 6 Wisconsin.
  • LB Khaleke Hudson ranks third in the Big Ten with 9.7 tackles per game.
  • DL Kwity Paye ranks 16th in FBS in tackles for loss with 1.5 per game and 22nd in sacks with 0.90 per game.
  • Michigan has five interceptions this season with defensive backs Lavert Hill and Ambry Thomas tallying two each. Thomas has also recovered a pair of fumbles to rank tied for fifth in FBS.
  • Michigan has surpassed 400 yards of total offense three times this season, doing so against Illinois (489), Rutgers (476) and Middle Tennessee State (453).
  • Quarterback Shea Patterson is a top-20 finalist for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award.
  • Punter Will Hart leads the Big Ten and ranks ninth in FBS averaging 46.5 yards per punt.

 
PENN STATE WHITE OUT

  • A tradition stretching back to a student section white out in 2004, Penn State White Outs have created an unrivaled atmosphere inside Beaver Stadium.
  • Saturday marks the 12th time the Nittany Lions will host a full-stadium Penn State White Out.
  • Penn State holds a 5-6 record when the full stadium wears white, including a 2-1 record against Michigan.
  • Michigan is tying Ohio State with its fourth full-stadium Penn State White Out appearance.
  • This season's game marks Michigan's fourth consecutive trip to Beaver Stadium as the White Out opponent and first since 2017.
  • Michigan was also the opponent for a pair of student section-only white outs in 2006 and 2010.
Date Opponent Result Attend.
Oct. 9, 2004* #9 Purdue L, 13-20 108,183
Oct. 8, 2005* #6 Ohio State W, 17-10 109,839
Oct. 14, 2006* #4 Michigan L, 10-17 110,007
Sept. 8, 2007 Notre Dame W, 31-10 110,078
Sept. 27, 2008 #22 Illinois W, 38-24 109,626
Sept. 26, 2009 Iowa L, 10-21 109,316
Oct. 30, 2010* Michigan W, 41-31 108,539
Sept. 10, 2011 #3 Alabama L, 11-27 107,846
Oct. 27, 2012 #9 Ohio State L, 23-35 107,818
Oct. 12, 2013 #18 Michigan W, 43-40 (4OT) 107,884
Oct. 25, 2014 #13 Ohio State L, 24-31 (2OT) 107,895
Nov. 21, 2015 #13 Michigan L, 16-28 107,418
Oct. 22, 2016 #2 Ohio State W, 24-21 107,280
Oct. 21, 2017 #19 Michigan W, 42-13 110,823
Sept. 29, 2018 #4 Ohio State L, 26-27 110,889
Oct. 19, 2019 #16 Michigan -- --

* Student section only
 
LIONS UNDER THE LIGHTS

  • The 2019 season marks the 19th straight with at least one regular-season night game on the schedule, the 11th since 2000 with multiple night games in the same season and the most night regular-season games in program history with four scheduled.
  • Penn State has won its first three night games this season, defeating Buffalo, 45-13, (Sept. 7) at home and Maryland, 59-0, (Sept. 27) and No. 17/18 Iowa, 17-12, (Oct. 12) on the road.
  • Penn State is playing back-to-back night games after a win at Iowa last week, and its third night game in the last four weeks.
  • Game times for the final five games of the regular season have not been announced.
  • Penn State's only losses in its last 13 night games are both to Ohio State.
  • Penn State is 54-31 at night all-time. The figure breaks down to 15-10 at home, 27-14 on the road and 12-7 in neutral site games. Penn State is 1-1 at regular season neutral sites, 11-6 in bowl games and 1-0 in conference championship games.
  • On Oct. 12, 2013, the Lions claimed the longest game in Big Ten history when they edged Michigan under the lights, 43-40, in four overtimes in front of a sellout Beaver Stadium crowd of 107,844 on Homecoming.

 
GET UP, IT'S GAMEDAY

  • ESPN's College GameDay Built by The Home Depot program will be live from Penn State on Saturday.
  • This is the 19th time College GameDay has been at the site of a Penn State game.
  • The popular pregame college football program will air live from 9 a.m.-noon (ET) Saturday.
  • College GameDay will be appearing at a Penn State game for the fourth consecutive season, joining the 2018 Ohio State game (home), 2017 Michigan (home) and Ohio State (away) contests and the 2016 Big Ten Championship Game.
  • The eight-time Emmy Award-winning show is hosted by Rece Davis, who is joined by analysts Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard and David Pollack, as well as contributors Chris 'The Bear' Fallica, Jen Lada, Tom Rinaldi, Maria Taylor and Gene Wojciechowski.
  • Saturday's broadcast marks the eighth time College GameDay has originated from Penn State and the first time it has done so in back-to-back-to-back years. It was also in Happy Valley in 1997 (Michigan), 1999 (Arizona), 2005 (Ohio State), 2007 (Ohio State), 2009 (Iowa), 2017 (Michigan) and 2018 (Ohio State).
  • Penn State is 3-4 with GameDay on campus, defeating Arizona (1999), Ohio State (2005) and Michigan (2017).
Date Opponent Score
1. Oct. 15, 1994 at Michigan W, 31-24
2. Oct. 5, 1996 at Ohio State L, 38-7
3. Nov. 8, 1997 Michigan L, 34-8
4. Oct. 3, 1998 at Ohio State L, 28-9
5. Aug. 28, 1999 Arizona W, 41-7
6. Sept. 25, 2004 at Wisconsin L, 16-3
7. Oct. 8, 2005 Ohio State W, 17-10
8. Nov. 19, 2005 at Michigan State W, 31-22
9. Sept. 23, 2006 at Ohio State L, 28-6
10. Oct. 27, 2007 Ohio State L, 37-17
11. Oct. 25, 2008 at Ohio State W, 13-6
12. Sept. 26, 2009 Iowa L, 21-10
13. Sept. 11, 2010 at Alabama L, 24-3
14. Nov. 13, 2010 at Ohio State L, 38-24
15. Dec. 3, 2016 vs. Wisconsin (Indianapolis) W, 38-31
16. Oct. 21, 2017 Michigan W, 42-13
17. Oct. 28, 2017 at Ohio State L, 39-38
18. Sept. 29, 2018 Ohio State L, 27-26
19. Oct. 19, 2019 Michigan --

 
FOWLER RETURNS TO STATE COLLEGE

  • Former State College resident Chris Fowler will handle play-by-play duties on Saturday's broadcast.
  • The first college football game Fowler attended was a thrilling Penn State win over Stanford in Beaver Stadium on Sept. 14, 1974.
  • Fowler lived in State College when he was in seventh-ninth grades in school, while his father, Knox, was a theatre professor at Penn State.
  • Fowler has credited his time in State College as a major influence on his career path of covering college football.

 
PSU ON ABC

  • Penn State is appearing on ABC for its third time this season and 184th time all-time, the most of any other network.
  • Penn State is 107-75-1 all-time playing on ABC.

 
TOP 25

  • Penn State and Michigan are meeting as AP Top 25 opponents for the 11th time in series history.
  • Penn State is 4-6 in the 10 ranked match-ups and 3-4 as the higher ranked team.
  • Penn State and Michigan are meeting as ranked opponents in three consecutive seasons for the first time since meeting as top-25 opponents for seven consecutive seasons from 1993-99.
Year PSU MICH Site Result
1993 7 18 Home Michigan, 21-13
1994 3 5 Away Penn State, 31-24
1995 19 12 Home Penn State, 27-17
1996 11 16 Away Penn State, 29-17
1997 2 4 Home Michigan, 34-8
1998 9 22 Away Michigan, 27-0
1999 6 16 Home Michigan, 31-27
2002 15 13 Away Michigan, 27-24 (OT)
2017 2 19 Home Penn State, 42-13
2018 14 5 Away Michigan, 42-7
2019 7 16 Home --

 
LARGEST STADIUMS IN AMERICA

  • Michigan and Penn State have the largest stadiums in the United States with a combined capacity of 214,173. Michigan Stadium (107,601) and Beaver Stadium (106,572), rank second and third in the world, respectively, in total capacity.
  • Only Rungrado 1st of May Stadium in North Korea has a larger capacity, estimated to be either 114,000 or 150,000 by various sources.
  • Michigan (111,185) and Penn State (105,965) rank first and second, respectively in average attendance this season.

 
COACHING CONNECTIONS

  • Penn State Head Coach James Franklin and Assistant Athletics Director for Performance Enhancement Dwight Galt III and Michigan Defensive Coordinator Don Brown were on the Maryland coaching staff together in 2009.
  • Penn State Associate Head Coach/Run Game Coordinator/Defensive Line coach Sean Spencer was the special teams coordinator and defensive line coach at UMass from 2007-08 under Brown, who was the head coach at the time.
  • Michigan Offensive Coordinator Josh Gattis was the Penn State wide receivers coach from 2014-17 and was on Franklin's Vanderbilt staff as the wide receivers coach from 2012-13.
  • Penn State alum Michael Zordich is the Michigan cornerbacks coach. Zordich was an All-American at safety in 1985.
  • Penn State alum NaVorro Bowman played for Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh with the San Francisco 49ers.

 
NITTANY LIONS FROM MICHIGAN

  • LB Lance Dixon – West Bloomfield/West Bloomfield
  • CB Donovan Johnson - Detroit/Cass Tech
  • WR KJ Hamler - Pontiac/IMG Academy (Fla.)

 
PENN STATE-MICHIGAN CONNECTIONS

  • Penn State senior CB John Reid and Michigan grad student OL Jon Runyan played together at St. Joseph's Prep in Philadelphia.
  • Penn State sophomore WR KJ Hamler and Michigan seniors DB Tyler Cochran and OL Dan Jokisch all attended Orchard Lake St. Mary's outside Detroit.
  • Hamler and Michigan juniors LB Jordan Anthony, and OL Cesar Ruiz played together at IMG Academy in Florida. Hamler and Anthony also competed together in 2016 at The Opening in Beaverton, Oregon. Michigan junior QB Shea Patterson attended IMG the year prior.
  • Penn State freshman RB Noah Cain and LB Charles Thomas played together at IMG Academy in 2017.
  • Cain, Penn State freshman CB Makai Self and Michigan freshman DB DJ Turner played together at IMG Academy in 2018.
  • Penn State freshman S Tyler Rudolph and Michigan's Thomas both attended St. Thomas More in Connecticut.
  • Penn State sophomore CB Donovan Johnson and Michigan senior OL Michael Onwenu and juniors WR Donovan Peoples-Jones and DB Jaylen Kelly-Powell played together at Cass Technical in Detroit.
  • Penn State sophomore S Jonathan Sutherland and Michigan junior DL Luiji Vilain played together at Episcopal in Virginia.
  • Penn State sophomore DE Jayson Oweh and Michigan freshman DL David Ojabo and sophomore OL Kraig Correll played together at Blair Academy in New Jersey.
  • Penn State junior SN Chris Stoll and Michigan freshman LB Joey Velazquez attended St. Francis De Sales in Ohio.
  • Penn State junior S C.J. Holmes and Michigan junior WR Tarik Black played together at Cheshire Academy in Connecticut.
  • Penn State freshman QB Ta'Quan Roberson and Michigan senior DL Michael Dwumfour attended DePaul Catholic in New Jersey.
  • Penn State sophomore K Rafael Checa and Michigan freshman DB Quinten Johnson played together at St. John's College High School.

 
BOWLING AGAIN

  • Penn State became bowl eligible when it defeated Iowa for its sixth win of the season.
  • The Lions have appeared in 49 bowl games in program history, tied for ninth-highest among FBS schools at the start of the season.

 
FRANKLIN SET TO BOWL AGAIN

  • Head coach James Franklin has guided his teams to bowl appearances in each of his nine seasons as a head coach (3 at Vanderbilt; 6 at Penn State).
  • He is one of five active head coaches who have earned bowl eligibility in their first nine or more consecutive seasons on the job.

 
Bowl Eligibility First 9+ Seasons
 

# Coach Team(s); Years
13 Chris Petersen Boise State/Washington; 2006-pres.
12* Dabo Swinney Clemson; 2008-pres.
11 Bronco Mendenhall BYU; 2005-15
10 Mike Leach Texas Tech; 2000-09
9* James Franklin Vanderbilt/PSU; 2011-pres.
8 David Shaw Stanford; 2011-pres.

* Bowl eligible this season
 
ON TV

  • Penn State has had 305 of its last 307 games televised, including 192 consecutive games.
  • Over the last 15 seasons, every Penn State game has aired on either ABC, FOX, BTN, NBC or an ESPN channel.

 
GILLIKIN NAMED B1G SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK

  • P Blake Gillikin was named the Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week after contributing to the field position battle at Iowa.
  • Gillikin averaged 42.1 yards per punt on seven punts, placing five inside the 20 and a career high-matching three inside the 10.
  • Gillikin hit a 62-yard punt in the third quarter, his 47th career punt over 50 yards and seventh career punt of 60 or more yards.

 
COMPLEMENTARY FOOTBALL

  • Penn State (2nd, 8.2 ppg allowed; 9th, 42.0 ppg scored), Wisconsin (1st, 4.8 ppg allowed; 8th 42.5 ppg scored) Ohio State (4th, 8.8 ppg allowed; 4th, 49.3 ppg scored) are the only three teams to rank in the Top 10 nationally in both scoring defense and offense.
  • The Nittany Lions have played complementary football over the last three-plus years (2016-19) and it shows in the national landscape.
  • Over the last three-plus years the Penn State offense is:
    • Eighth in FBS in points per possession (2.33).
    • Fifth in FBS in points per play (1.80).
    • Eighth in FBS in scoring offense (38.60).
    • Eighth in FBS in scoring percentage (43.02).
    • Ninth in FBS in touchdown percentage (34.55).
    • Ninth in FBS in turnover percentage (12.13).
  • Over the last three-plus years the Penn State defense is:
    • Second in FBS in plays per point (4.75)
    • Fifth in FBS in three-and-out percentage (28.83).
    • Sixth in FBS in yards per play (4.72).
    • Seventh in FBS in points per possession (1.22).
    • Ninth in FBS in second half points allowed (8.85).
    • Sixth in FBS in scoring percentage (23.89).
    • Eighth in FBS in touchdown percentage (16.64).
    • Fifth in FBS in punt percentage (48.60).
    • Eighth in FBS in scoring defense (17.65).
    • Eighth in FBS in percent of drives not crossing the 50-yard line (60.52).
    • Sixth in FBS in percent of non-scoring drives (76.60).
    • Sixth in FBS in percent of drives of 25 yards or less (58.97).
    • Seventh in FBS in percent of drive of six plays or less (60.90).

 
CONTROLLING THE GAME

  • Penn State has held the lead for 82.1 percent of its plays (841-1,024) this season and has had at least a three point lead for 78.9 percent of its plays (808-1,024), both of which rank sixth in FBS.
  • The Nittany Lions have held a lead for 73.6 percent of their plays over the last three seasons (2017-19) to rank third in FBS, behind only Alabama and Clemson.
  • Over a four-year span (2016-19), Penn State has held the lead for 64.7 percent of the plays, which is seventh among FBS schools.
  • By comparison, from 2013-15, Penn State led for 42.8 percent (2760 of 6453) of its plays, to rank 69th in FBS.

 
STRONG STARTS

  • Penn State was the only FBS team to reach Week 7 without allowing a first-quarter point this season. Iowa snapped its streak with a field goal.
  • Penn State and Wisconsin are the only teams to not allow a first-quarter touchdown this season.
  • Penn State is outscoring opponents 69-3 in the first quarter.
  • The Nittany Lions' 21 first quarter points vs. Purdue were the most in an opening stanza since scoring 21 vs. Kent State in the first quarter last season.
  • The 21 first quarter points were also the most in a Big Ten game since notching 28 vs. Indiana in the opening stanza of 2017.

 
SOLID IN THE MIDDLE

  • Penn State is not leaving early for halftime or returning late, boasting a plus-5.7 scoring differential in the middle eight minutes of the game to rank tied for 13th in FBS.
  • Penn State owns a plus-4.7 scoring differential in the first four minutes of the second half, which ranks tied for first in FBS with Oklahoma and Maryland.
  • Penn State has not allowed a point in the first four minutes of the second half this season.

 
MIDSEASON HONORS

  • QB Sean Clifford was named to the Maxwell Award watchlist, while DE Yetur Gross-Matos was named a Lott IMPACT Trophy quarterfinalist.
  • The Maxwell Award, named in honor of Robert W. "Tiny" Maxwell, has been given to America's College Player of the Year since 1937. Maxwell's contributions to the game of football were extensive, including time as a player, a sportswriter and an official.
  • The Lott IMPACT Trophy honors the top defensive player in college football who makes the biggest impact for his team, both on and off the field. The award is given to a distinguished young man who represents the qualities embodied by Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott – Integrity, Maturity, Performance, Academics, Community and Tenacity.

 
GREEN LIGHT IN THE RED ZONE

  • Dating back to 2017, Penn State has scored on 102 of its last 107 red zone trips, including 82 touchdowns.
  • This season, Penn State is 24-for-25 in the red zone with 19 touchdowns.
  • Penn State's missed field goal in the second quarter vs. Purdue marked the first time the Nittany Lions did not convert a red zone trip this season, snapping a 21-for-21 start.
  • Penn State is fourth in red zone scoring over the last three years (2017-19) with a scoring rate of 90.85 percent.

 
EARLY SEASON PASSING PRODUCTIVITY

  • Since at least 2000, QB Sean Clifford and Trace McSorley are the only Penn State quarterbacks to throw for at least 13 touchdowns and 1,500 yards in the first six games of the season.
  • Clifford is the third Penn State quarterback to have three games with 250 or more passing yards and three or more passing touchdowns in a season, joining Trace McSorley (2017, 4 games) and Christian Hackenberg (2013, 3 games) as the only Lions to do so.
  • With five 200-yard passing games this season, Clifford is tied for 17th all-time at Penn State with John Hufnagel (1972), Chuck Fusina (1977), Doug Strang (1983), Zack Mills (2001, 2002) and Matt McGloin (2010).
  • Clifford threw for 398 yards at Maryland, ranking third in Penn State single-game history, behind Christian Hackenberg (454; vs. UCF, 2014) and Zack Mills (299, vs. Iowa, 2002).
  • Clifford became the first Penn State quarterback to open a season with six touchdown passes in the first two games since Daryll Clark did the same in 2009.

 
EFFICIENT AND CONSISTENT

  • QB Sean Clifford's 15.29 passing yards per completion rank seventh in FBS and second in the Big Ten behind Minnesota's Tanner Morgan (16.02).
  • Clifford's 9.81 yards per pass attempt rank ninth in FBS and second in the Big Ten behind Minnesota's Tanner Morgan (11.11).
  • Clifford's 260.0 passing yards per game lead the Big Ten and rank 28th in FBS.
  • Clifford ranks third in the Big Ten and ninth in FBS with a 171.0 passing efficiency rating.
  • Clifford's 24 completions of 20 or more yards rank tied for 16th in FBS.
  • Clifford's 12 completions of 30 or more yards rank tied for 13th in FBS.
  • Clifford's nine completions of 40 or more yards rank tied for fifth in FBS.
  • Clifford's five completions of 50 or more yards rank tied for fifth in FBS.
  • Clifford threw for at least 200 yards in the first five games of the year.

 
DUAL THREAT

  • QB Sean Clifford (1,560 passing yds; 13 passing TDs; 252 rushing yds, 2 rushing TD) is one of three FBS quarterbacks with at least 1,500 yards passing, 13 passing touchdowns, 250 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns this season. He joins Oklahoma's Jalen Hurts (1,758 passing yds; 17 passing TDs; 630 rushing yds; 8 rush TD) and Wake Forest's Jamie Newman (1,772 passing yds; 17 passing TDs; 275 rushing yds; 3 rush TD) in accomplishing the feat.
  • Averaging 302.0 yards of total offense per game, Clifford leads the Big Ten and ranks 12th in FBS.
  • Clifford totaled the third-most yards of total offense in a game in school history at Maryland with 452 (398 pass, 54 rush).
  • Clifford is second on the team with 252 yards rushing. The total ranks 14th all-time at Penn State for season rushing yards by a quarterback.
  • Clifford has a rushing touchdown and passing touchdown in two games this season.
  • Clifford had a career-long 58-yard rush against Buffalo.
  • Clifford ranks 13th all-time at Penn State with 249 career rushing yards as a quarterback.

 
THIRD DOWN IMPROVEMENT

  • Penn State ranks sixth in the Big Ten and 29th in FBS with a 42.2 third down conversion percentage after converting 27-of-47 third downs (57.4%) in its last three games.
  • Penn State went 7-for-30 (23%) on third down in its first three games to rank 127th nationally in Week 4.

 
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY ON THE GROUND

  • Penn State ranks fourth in the Big Ten with 191.2 rushing yards per game, primarily using a rotation in the first half of the season.
  • Penn State has four rushers averaging at least 35 rushing yards per game, led by freshman Noah Cain (51.7 ypg). Cain is followed by quarterback Sean Clifford (42.0 ypg), Journey Brown (38.8 ypg) and Devyn Ford (35.8 ypg).
  • Penn State ranks tied for eighth in FBS with 18 rushing touchdowns. Those touchdowns have been scored by seven different Nittany Lions. Cain (6) and Brown (3) have accounted for half of them.
  • Cain (Purdue, 105 yds & Iowa, 102 yds), Ford (Idaho, 107 yds), Brown (Pitt, 109 yds) and have each had 100-yard rushing games this season.

 
NOT GOING ANYWHERE ON THE GROUND

  • Penn State is allowing just 53.8 yards rushing per game to rank third in FBS and second in the Big Ten.
  • Penn State is allowing just 1.59 yards per rush to lead FBS.
  • Penn State has held its last four opponents to less than 100 yards rushing and five of six this season.
  • Penn State is one of four teams (San Diego State, Utah, Wisconsin) to have held opponents to 70 or fewer rushing yards in five games this season.
  • Penn State held Purdue to minus-19 yards rushing, the fewest rushing yards allowed by a Nittany Lion defense since holding Maryland to minus-32 in 1978.
  • The minus-19 yards rushing allowed is the second-lowest rushing yards allowed in an FBS game this season, trailing the minus-73 yards allowed by Michigan State against Tulsa in the season opener.
  • The minus-19 yards rushing is the fewest allowed by Penn State in a Big Ten game. The previous low was minus-12 yards rushing allowed to Purdue in 1998.
  • The minus-19 yards rushing allowed is the fifth-fewest rushing yards allowed by Penn State since 1947.
  • The minus-19 yards rushing allowed are the seventh-fewest given up by a Big Ten team since 2000.
  • Three of the five lowest rushing yard allowed totals  under Franklin have been established this season, with minus-19 yards allowed to Purdue, 4 yards allowed to Idaho and 24 yards allowed to Pitt.

 
TOTAL DEFENSE

  • Penn State ranks fourth in FBS and third in the Big Ten allowing just 259.7 yards per game.
  • Penn State has held three opponents under 150 yards of total offense this season (145, Idaho; 128, Maryland; 104, Purdue). It's the first time since at least 1971 that the Nittany Lions have held three opponents to less than 150 yards in a season.
  • Penn State, Indiana and Wisconsin are the only three teams in FBS to have three games with less than 150 yards of total offense allowed this season. No other team has two games. Since 2000, Michigan (2015) and Ohio State (2007) are the only other Big Ten teams to accomplish the feat.
  • The Nittany Lions are the first team in FBS to have held three opponents to 150 total yards or less in a single season since Boston College did so against four opponents in 2016.
  • The 104 yards allowed by Penn State against Purdue are the second-fewest given up by the Lions in a Big Ten game and the fewest since giving up 87 to Rutgers in 2016.

 
MORE DEFENSIVE FEATS

  • Penn State limited Purdue to eight first downs, the third time this season that the Nittany Lions have held a team to 10 or fewer first downs (5 vs. Idaho; 10 at Maryland)
  • The eight first downs given up against Purdue is tied for the fifth-fewest allowed by the Nittany Lions in a Big Ten game (8 vs. Iowa in 1996; 8 vs. Iowa in 2007).
  • The eight first downs allowed is the second-lowest allowed by Penn State in a Big Ten contest under head coach James Franklin (5 at Rutgers; 2016) and is tied for the third fewest overall allowed under Franklin.
  • The 68 passing yards allowed at Maryland are tied for the seventh-fewest given up by the Nittany Lions in a Big Ten game.

 
WILD DOGS GETTING TO THE QB

  • Penn State ranks second in FBS in sacks (4.5) and third in tackles for loss (9.8) per game.
  • See National Nits on Page 9
  • DEs Yetur Gross-Matos and Shaka Toney lead Penn State with 5.5 sacks to rank tied for 16th in FBS and fourth in the Big Ten with 0.92 per game.
  • Toney had three sacks against Purdue, one off of his career best mark of four set at Indiana last season.
  • The Nittany Lions recorded 10 sacks vs. Purdue, the most for Penn State since the school record of 11 against Illinois in 1999 and the most by a Big Ten team since Ohio State had 10 sacks against Wisconsin in 2007.
  • The 10 sacks are tied for the most in FBS in a single game this season. (SMU and Florida).
  • Penn State's 3.42 sacks per game over the last five years (2015-19) are the most in FBS.
  • Penn State's 202 sacks over the last five years (2015-19 are third only to Clemson (219) and Alabama (207), the teams that have won the last four National Championships.
  • Over the last five years, Penn State's defense has cumulated a 9.55 percent sack percentage (202 sacks on 2,162 plays), which ranks third behind Clemson and Michigan.
  • Penn State has posted four consecutive 40-plus sack seasons for the first time in program history after totaling 47 last season, 42 in 2017, 40 in 2016 and 46 in 2015.
  • In 2018, Penn State led the country in sacks per game (3.62) and ranked fourth and led the Big Ten in tackles for loss (8.2) per game.

 
DEFENSIVE TACKLES SHINE

  • DT Robert Windsor tied his career high with six tackles at Iowa, equaling the mark he has had three times.
  • Windsor also equaled his personal mark with 2.5 tackles for loss, which he also accomplished against Illinois in 2018.
  • DT PJ Mustipher forced his second career fumble on a TFL at Iowa, which was recovered by Jan Johnson.
  • Mustipher had a career-high seven tackles to tie for the team lead in the game.
  • Pro Football Focus recognized Windsor and Mustipher on its National Team of the Week for Week 7, naming Windsor to the first team and Mustipher to the second team.

 
BIG LOSSES

  • Penn State ranks third in FBS in tackles for loss (9.8).
  • DE Yetur Gross-Matos leads Penn State with 8.5 TFLs to rank 21st in FBS and eighth in the Big Ten.
  • A total of 23 Nittany Lions have recored at least a half-tackle for loss.
  • Penn State had 13 TFLs against Purdue, giving them at least 10 TFLs in four of six games this season.
  • Penn State, Ohio State and South Florida are the only teams in FBS with four games of 10 or more TFLs this season.
  • Penn State posted double-digit tackles for loss in the first three games of the season (11 vs. Idaho; 10 vs. Buffalo; 10 vs. Pitt) for the first time since opening 2007 by accomplishing the feat in four consecutive games (10 vs. FIU; 10 vs. Notre Dame; 10 vs. Buffalo; 15 vs. Michigan).