IOWA CITY, Iowa - The No. 4 Penn State football team fell to No. 3 Iowa 23-20 in a Big Ten showdown in Iowa City on Saturday.
The Nittany Lions got off to a quick start in the game, jumping out to a 17-3 lead in the first half, but the Iowa defense would hold Penn State to just three second half points as the Hawkeyes came from behind for the victory.
In a defensive affair, the Penn State defense held Iowa to 305 yards of total offense. Linebacker Ellis Brooks led the unit with a career-high 14 tackles in the contest. Jaquan Brisker tied a career-high with nine tackles while adding an interception and a pass breakup. Arnold Ebiketie was a force off the edge for Penn State, recording 3.5 tackles for loss and a sack to go along with his season-high nine tackles.
Both of the Nittany Lions' offensive touchdowns came on the ground, with Noah Cain punching in a 2-yarder and quarterback Sean Clifford scoring from four yards out. Clifford completed 15-of-25 passes for 145 yards before leaving the game late in the second quarter.
Penn State heads into its bye week with a 5-1 record with six Big Ten contests remaining on its schedule. The Nittany Lions will return to action in a home contest against Illinois on Oct. 23 at Beaver Stadium. The 2021 Penn State Football season is presented by PSECU.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Iowa capitalized off a turnover to get on the board first. After a Jestin Jacobs interception set the Hawkeyes up inside the 5 yard-line, the Penn State defense stood strong to hold Iowa to a field goal in the game's opening minutes.
The Nittany Lions quickly moved down the field on their ensuing drive, moving 75 yards in just 2:31 to set up a 2-yard touchdown run by Noah Cain.
Brisker would give the Nittany Lions their first takeaway, intercepting a tipped pass to give Penn State the ball in Iowa territory. After Sean Clifford connected with KeAndre Lambert-Smith for a 30-yard gain deep into the red zone, the quarterback would score on his own with a 4-yard touchdown run.
Penn State would extend its lead in the opening minutes of the second quarter on a Jordan Stout 32-yard field goal to make it 17-3 Nittany Lions.
Iowa cut into the lead on its next position as Spencer Petras found Charlie Jones for a 9-yard touchdown to cut the Penn State lead to seven.
Stout would push the Nittany Lion lead back to double-digits midway through the third with a 44-yard field goal.
Iowa's Caleb Shudak would cut Penn State's advantage back to single digits in the closing minutes of the third quarter with a 48-yard field goal. They would add another three points minutes later on a 36-yarder from Shudak.
The Hawkeyes would jump ahead with a quick strike late in the fourth quarter when Petras hit Nico Ragaini for a 44-yard touchdown to give Iowa a 23-20 lead that would hold as the final score.