No. 13/11 Penn State used a 13-play, 88-yard touchdown drive in the third quarter and a late goal line stand in the fourth to secure a 17-10 victory over Pittsburgh in front of a "Stripe Out" crowd of 108,661 Saturday afternoon in Beaver Stadium.
Penn State's (3-0) third-quarter scoring drive was capped by a 13-yard touchdown run by freshman running back Noah Cain (Baton Rouge, La.), which proved to be the game-deciding score. The Nittany Lion defense then prevented Pittsburgh (1-2) from tying it up late, denying the Panthers despite first-and-goal at the 1-yard line. Linebacker Cam Brown (Burtonsville, Md.) forced Pitt quarterback Kenny Pickett to throw the ball away on first and third downs, and safety Garrett Taylor (Richmond, Va.) and linebacker Jesse Luketa (Ottawa, Ontario) stuffed Pickett on a rushing on second down, leading to a failed 19-yard field goal attempt on fourth down with 4:54 remaining.
Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford (Cincinnati, Ohio) threw for 222 yards and the Nittany Lions combined for 167 yards rushing, led by Journey Brown's (Meadville, Pa.) 109 yards – including an 85-yard run - on 10 carries, Cain's 40 yards and one touchdown on six carries and a touchdown by freshman Devyn Ford (Stafford, Va.)
Pickett led Pitt's offense, completing 35-of-51 passes for 372 yards. He primarily targeted Taysir Mack, who finished with a career-high 12 catches for 125 yards.
The Penn State defense held Pitt to 24 yards rushing on 25 attempts including minus-6 yards on 10 attempts in the second half. The Panthers managed just 8 yards on 12 plays in the third quarter. Linebacker Micah Parsons (Harrisburg, Pa.) led the way with nine tackles (seven solo), including two tackles for loss, while linebackers Brown and Jan Johnson (Mohnton, Pa.) and defensive end Shaka Toney (Philadelphia, Pa.) each added second-half sacks for the Nittany Lions.
How it Happened
Pitt started to gain momentum in the latter half of the first quarter, pinning Penn State at its own 2-yard line, but on third-and-9 from the 3, Brown broke through the middle, slipped through a tackle and ran 85 yards to the Pitt 12. After a penalty moved the Lions to the 4, Ford found the end zone after consecutive rushes of 4 and 1 yards, and Penn State took a 7-0 lead with 4:43 on the clock.
Pitt answered to take the lead with an 18-play, 85-yard field goal drive for its first score with 6:43 remaining in the half, and followed that with an eight-play, 78-yard touchdown drive capped by a 3-yard A.J. Davis touchdown run with 2:08 remaining. However, Penn State tied the game at 10-10 in the closing seconds with a school-record 57-yard field goal by Jordan Stout.
The Nittany Lions retook the lead, 17-10, with 5:50 remaining in the third quarter on Cain's touchdown. Pitt threatened with a pair of late fourth quarter drives but was denied both times.
Up Next
Penn State has an off-week before traveling to Maryland for a Friday night game Sept. 27, which will kick at 8 p.m. on FS1.
Single-game tickets are available for the 2019 Penn State Football season presented by PSECU. Fans can visit www.PSUnrivaled.com, call 1-800-NITTANY weekdays from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. or visit the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office weekdays from 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
