TEAM
- Penn State leads 12-6 in the all-time series, including 7-2 in home matchups.
- Since 2014, Penn State is 61-2 when leading by 10+ points at halftime.
- WR Zay Robinson made his first career start. He is one of seven Nittany Lions to make their first career collegiate start this season.
OFFENSE
Team
- Penn State had six plays of 20+ yards tonight (two passing, four rushing), giving them 48 plays of 20+ yards this season (36 passing, 12 rushing).
- Both Cam Wallace and James Peoples had touchdown receptions tonight, bring the total to eight players that have caught a touchdown pass this season (Benjamin Brahmer, Brett Eskildsen, Koby Howard, Andrew Rappleyea, Zay Robinson, Chase Sowell, Cam Wallace, James Peoples).
- Tonight’s game marks the 40th occasion since 2016 that Penn State has scored 40+ points.
- Penn State had 229 rushing yards tonight, the 57th game since 2016 with 200+ yards on the ground.
- QB Rocco Becht completed nine passes for 81 yards and three touchdowns.
- He connected on a 19-yard touchdown pass to Benjamin Brahmer in the first quarter.
- Becht added a 1-yard touchdown pass to Cam Wallace in the second quarter.
- He threw a 4-yard touchdown pass to Brahmer in the third quarter. It was Becht’s 82nd career touchdown pass.
- Twelve of Becht’s 18 touchdown passes this season are 15+ yards.
- The redshirt senior scored a one-yard rushing touchdown to cap off Penn State’s first drive. It marked his 22nd career rushing touchdown.
- Becht has 15 career games with both a passing and rushing touchdown.
- The Florida native recorded his 26th career game with 2+ passing touchdowns and 10th career game with 3+ passing touchdowns.
- Becht has led his teams to 32 career wins, most among current FBS quarterbacks.
- QB Alex Manske threw his first career touchdown tonight, a 22-yard toss to James Peoples in the fourth quarter.
- For his career, Manske has 1 career passing touchdown and 1 career rushing touchdown.
- RB Carson Hansen finished the game with 126 yards on 12 carries.
- Hansen scored on a 46-yard run in the second quarter. He has 26 career rushing touchdowns and seven rushing touchdowns this season.
- He scored on a rushing touchdown for the sixth-straight game. That is PSU’s longest rushing touchdown streak since Kaytron Allen’s eight-game streak in 2025.
- Hansen broke off a 34-yard rush on Penn State’s opening drive and added a 21-yard rush in the second quarter. He owns 20 career rushes of 20+ yards.
- The senior posted his eighth career 100-yard rushing game and his second this season. He had 100+ rushing yards in back-to-back games after rushing for 119 yards at Washington. He is the first Nittany Lion with 100+ rushing yards in back-to-back games since Kaytron Allen in 2025 (181 at Michigan State; 160 vs. Nebraska; 226 at Rutgers)
- RB Cam Wallace hauled in a 1-yard receiving touchdown in the second quarter. It was his first career touchdown grab.
- Wallace broke off a 23-yard rush on PSU’s opening drive of the second half. He has four career rushes of 20+ yards.
- RB James Peoples grabbed the first receiving touchdown of his career on a 22-yard catch in the fourth quarter.
- TE Benjamin Brahmer made two touchdown grabs.
- Brahmer hauled in a 19-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter.
- He added a 4-yard touchdown grab in the third quarter.
- The senior has 14 career receiving touchdowns and five this season.
- Brahmer now has three career games with multiple receiving touchdowns.
- TE Andrew Rappleyea had a 32-yard catch on PSU’s opening drive of the second half. He has four career receptions of 20+ yards.
DEFENSE
Team
- Penn State limited Minnesota to 60 total yards (28 passing, 32 rushing) in the first half.
- LB Kooper Ebel recovered a fumble to end Minnesota’s opening drive. It was Penn State’s first takeaway on an opening drive since August 30, 2025 against Nevada.
- Penn State owns 15 takeaways this season (10 interceptions, 5 fumbles).
- Since the start of the 2022 season, Penn State has forced 104 takeaways (62 interceptions, 42 fumbles).
- The Nittany Lions forced a fourth-down stop in the fourth quarter. That was PSU’s fourth fourth-down stop this season.
- PSU held Minnesota to 41 yards rushing, the 34th time keeping an opponent under 100 rushing yards since the start of the 2022 season and the 61st time since 2016. It was also Penn State’s 23rd time holding an opponent under 50 yards rushing since 2016.
- Penn State held Minnesota to 226 yards of total offense, the 62nd time keeping an opponent under 300 total yards since 2016.
- The Nittany Lions limited Minnesota to 185 yards passing, the 82nd time holding an opponent under 200 passing yards since 2016.
- LB Kooper Ebel tallied seven stops in the first half and finished the game with a team-high nine tackles.
- Ebel recovered a fumble on Minnesota’s opening drive, the first fumble recovery of his career.
- Ebel assisted on a tackle for loss, boosting his career total to 17.5 tackles for loss.
- DE Yvan Kemajou recorded a solo tackle for loss on Minnesota’s opening drive. He owns 10 career tackles for loss.
- CB Ibn McDaniels recorded a solo sack on an intentional grounding call in the fourth quarter. It was McDaniels’ first career sack and second career tackles for loss.
- DE Alexander McPherson collected a career-high two tackles for loss. His previous high was one tackle for loss, on two occasions and last against Washington.
- McPherson assisted on a tackle for loss on Minnesota’s opening drive and assisted on another tackle for loss in the fourth quarter.
- He added a solo sack in the first quarter. He has 4.5 career tackles for loss and 1.5 career sacks.
- DT Armstrong Nnodim assisted on a tackle for loss in the first quarter. He now has five career tackles for loss.
- S Jamison Patton collected four tackles in the first half and finished the game with six stops.
- LB Tony Rojas assisted on two tackles for loss in the opening stanza, and then assisted on one more tackle for loss in the fourth quarter. He owns 27 career tackles for loss.
- Since 1956, one of six Big Ten linebackers to post 27+ tackles for loss and 6+ interceptions in their career.
- DT Siale Taupaki assisted on a tackle for loss in the first quarter. He now has five career tackles for loss.
- DT Dallas Vakalahi notched a solo sack in the second quarter. He has 4.5 career tackles for loss and three career sacks.
- LB Cam Smith recorded a career-high eight tackles. His previous career high was four against Marshall earlier this season.
SPECIAL TEAMS
- K Ryan Barker went six-of-six on extra points tonight, making him 127-of-129 for his career. The 127 career extra points, good for sixth place at PSU and five behind Craig Fayak (132; 1990-93) for fifth all-time.
- The six points tonight give him 262 career points, good for eighth all-time at Penn State. On Saturday, he passed Travis Forney (258; 1996-99), Kayton Allen (258; 2022-25), and Tyler Davis (261; 2015-17). He is now nine points behind Sam Ficken (271; 2011-14) for seventh place
- P Nathan Tiyce averaged 44.6 yards on five punts.
- The sophomore booted a 46-yard punt to the Minnesota 10 early in the fourth quarter.
- Tiyce added a 46-yard punt to the Minnesota 3 later in the fourth stanza. He has 22 career punts inside the 20 and 16 inside the 10.