TEAM
- Penn State is 300-77 all-time in Beaver Stadium. The Nittany Lions are one of just nine FBS teams with 300 wins in their current stadium. Penn State is sixth in winning percentage in the current stadium (.795).
- Penn State welcomed 105,323 fans to Beaver Stadium. It was Penn State's highest attendance for a home opener since 2008 vs. Coastal Carolina (106,577).
- Penn State won its first meeting against Ball State.
- The Nittany Lions moved to 30-2 all-time against MAC teams and 28-3 against current members of the MAC.
- Penn State has won 13 consecutive games against teams that are not members of a Power Five conference.
- Penn State has won 11 consecutive games against non-conference teams during the regular season, dating back to a win over Temple in 2016.
- Penn State has won 17-straight non-conference home games, dating back to a win over Kent State in 2013.
- OL Eric Wilson made his first start at Penn State. He is one of eight Nittany Lions to make their first start in a Penn State uniform this season.
- LB Jamari Buddin, LB Dominic DeLuca, OL Olumuyiwa Fashanu, LB Kobe King, DT Fatorma Mulbah, S Jaylen Reed, QB Mason Stahl, DT Jordan van den Berg, WR Harrison Wallace III made their collegiate debuts. They are part of 13 Nittany Lions who have made their collegiate debut this season and 19 who have made their Penn State debut.
- With Buddin, King, Reed and Wallace making their debuts, six Nittany Lion true freshmen have now played this season.
- ATH Marquis Wilson played snaps on offense and defense, making him the first Penn State player to earn snaps on both sides of the ball in the same game since Justin King in 2005 against Florida State in the Orange Bowl.
OFFENSE
TEAM
- Penn State tallied 32 first downs. That is tied for second in the James Franklin era with 32 against Nebraska in 2017.
- The Nittany Lions had nine different players record at least one catch in the first half. That's the most since 10 players caught a pass in the first half at Maryland in 2019.
- Penn State finished with 10 players recording a reception, the most since 13 Nittany Lions had receptions at Maryland in 2019.
- The Nittany Lions finished with 240 rushing yards. It marks the 32nd time in the James Franklin era Penn State has rushed for over 200 yards. PSU is 26-6 in those games.
Sean Clifford
- With 35 passing yards on the first drive, QB Sean Clifford became the 10th Penn State quarterback to reach the 5,000 career passing yards mark.
- Clifford threw for 230 yards, bringing his career total to 5,209 passing yards.
- Clifford's one touchdown pass, to Jahan Dotson, moved him into a tie for fourth with Daryll Clark (2006-09) with 43 career passing touchdowns.
- Clifford scored on a 1-yard run in the opening quarter. It was his ninth career rushing touchdown, giving him sole possession of eighth all-time at Penn State in rushing touchdowns by a quarterback.
- Clifford had 21 completions, jumping him into eighth place on the Penn State career list with 385 completions.
- Clifford notched his 13th career 200-yard passing game.
- Clifford had 296 total yards vs. Ball State (230 passing, 66 rushing) moving him into sixth place on the Penn State all-time list with 6,014 total yards (5,209 passing and 805 rushing).
- Clifford now has 52 career touchdowns responsible for, moving into seventh at Penn State.
Noah Cain
- RB Noah Cain rushed for a 5-yard touchdown on Penn State's opening drive. It was his 10th career rushing touchdown and second this season.
- Cain caught three passes for a career-best 30 yards. The junior bettered his 27-yard performance at Wisconsin.
Jahan Dotson
- WR Jahan Dotson turned a screen pass into a 25-yard touchdown reception in the second quarter. It was Dotson's 15th career touchdown reception, tying him for 10th all-time at Penn State with Terry Smith (1988-91), Joe Jurevicius (1994-97) and Mike Gesicki (2014-17).
- With 65 receiving yards, Dotson now has 1,742 career receiving yards, good for 15th at Penn State and just two yards from passing Derrick Williams (2005-08) for the 14th spot.
- Dotson's five receptions on the day give him 102 for his career, moving into a tie with RB Saquon Barkley (2015-17) for 16th place.
- Dotson has a touchdown reception in three-straight games, dating back to the Illinois game in 2020. He has reached the end zone in four consecutive games, including an 81-yard punt return against Michigan State.
- Dotson had a five-game touchdown reception streak from 2019-20 (Rutgers, Memphis 2019; Indiana, Ohio State, Maryland 2020).
- Dotson has caught at least one pass in 31-straight games, dating back to Indiana game (10/20/18).
Parker Washington
- WR Parker Washington has caught a pass in all 11 games of his career.
- Washington finished with six receptions for 57 yards and a long of 31.
Marquis Wilson
- ATH Marquis Wilson made his first career catch in the second quarter.
Keyvone Lee
- RB Keyvone Lee had a career-long 24-yard reception in the first quarter. His previous long was a 14-yard catch against Iowa in 2020.
Ta'Quan Roberson
- QB Ta'Quan Roberson completed the first pass of his career and the first touchdown pass of his career on a 23-yard toss to TE Theo Johnson in the fourth quarter.
Theo Johnson
- TE Theo Johnson had the first touchdown catch of his career on a 23-yard toss from Ta'Quan Roberson in the fourth quarter.
- Johnson's 23-yard touchdown reception tied his career-long catch. He had a 23-yard grab last season against Illinois.
KeAndre Lambert-Smith
- WR KeAndre Lambert-Smith tied a career mark with four receptions. This marks the third time Lambert-Smith had four receptions in a game. He last did it at Wisconsin.
DEFENSE
Team
- Penn State has grabbed four interceptions in the first two games, already tying the season total from last year.
- Ball State attempted only 26 rushes. That is tied for the sixth-fewest for an opponent in the James Franklin era.
Jesse Luketa
- LB Jesse Luketa recorded his first career interception in the third quarter. Luketa returned it 16 yards for a touchdown, Penn State's first pick-six since John Reid against Buffalo in 2019.
Daequan Hardy
- CB Daequan Hardy recorded his first career interception in the third quarter.
- Hardy tallied a career-high three tackles. His previous best was two in three previous games with the last time against Michigan State in 2020.
Kalen King
- CB Kalen King posted the first three tackles of his career.
- King forced the first fumble of his career in the fourth quarter.
Curtis Jacobs
- LB Curtis Jacobs notched his first career sack in the second quarter.
Tyler Rudolph
- S Tyler Rudolph posted a career-high five tackles.
Charlie Katshir
- LB Charlie Katshir tied a career high with three tackles. He had done it twice previously, last vs. Ohio State in 2020.
Tyler Elsdon
- LB Tyler Elsdon set a new career high with three tackles.
Nick Tarburton
- DE Nick Tarburton matched a career high with two tackles. He also had two against Wisconsin.
Jamari Buddin
- LB Jamari Buddin posted the first three tackles of his career.
Coziah Izzard
- DT Coziah Izzard recorded his first career tackle in the first quarter.
Fatorma Mulbah
- DT Fatorma Mulbah notched the first tackle of his career.
Kobe King
- LB Kobe King had his first career tackle.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Jordan Stout
- K/P Jordan Stout converted a 45-yard field goal in the second quarter. It was his sixth career field goal make and the fifth of his career of more than 40 yards.
- Stout hit a 26-yard field goal in the third quarter and a 22-yard field goal in the fourth quarter for his first career game with multiple field goal makes.
- Stout averaged 51.3 yards per punt on three punts. He hit punts of 52 and 62 yards. He now has 10 career punts of 50 or more yards.