The Penn State Nittany Lions (7-2, 4-1) capitalized on a weak Illinois (4-4, 1-3) offense in a 39-0 win on Saturday afternoon at Beaver Stadium.
Big Plays: The Penn State defense reigned supreme in the shutout.
Geno Lewis scored his receiving first touchdown at Beaver Stadium in his career. Lewis previously tallied receiving touchdowns at an NFL stadium, Yankee Stadium and Ireland before notching a TD in Happy Valley.
Quarterback Christian Hackenberg was responsible for three touchdowns (two passing, one receiving) in the win.
Recap: Penn State scored two touchdowns in the first quarter to give themselves a quick lead over Illinois that would carry through to the end of the half.
Hackenberg connected with Chris Godwin for a five-yard touchdown 10 minutes into the first quarter, but kicker Joey Julius’ extra point attempt was blocked, giving the Lions a 6-0 lead.
Hackenberg hit Lewis from six yards for the Lions’ second touchdown after Troy Reeder picked off an interception and returned the ball 44 yards. Julius’ extra-point attempt on the play was blocked again. Julius did not come on the field again in the first half.
In the second quarter, wide receiver DeAndre Thompkins fumbled and Illinois recovered the ball at its own 37, but outstanding defensive work by Carl Nassib, Anthony Zettel, and Austin Johnson kept the Illini at bay.
Hackenberg broke three tackles in the second quarter in what turned out to be a highlight-reel-worthy three-yard run before Tyler Davis, the back-up kicker, took the field to nail a 42-yard field goal late in the second quarter to give the Nittany Lions a 15-0 lead that would eventually end the first half.
While Illinois was plagued with an inability to gain any momentum, Penn State’s strong offensive play continued early in the third quarter. With 11:18 remaining, freshman running back Nick Scott threw a 14-yard pass to Hackenberg, who scored his first career receiving touchdown on the play. With the good extra point attempt, Penn State took a 22-0 lead.
Nassib took down Lunt two plays later to extend his number of consecutive games with a sack to nine. For the season, he has 14.5 and is just half a sack away from taking over the single-season record.
Davis came out to kick a 28-yard field goal with 3:56 remaining in the half to give the Nittany Lions a 25-0 lead.
Through the start of the fourth quarter, Illinois rushed for negative yardage. Penn State’s defense was a brick wall and forced nine Illini punts through the first 45 minutes of play.
Saquon Barley opened the fourth quarter with a seven-yard touchdown that he punctuated with a leaping hurdle over two defensemen. Davis was good with the extra point attempt, and Penn State took a 32-0 lead with 13:07 remaining in the game.
The Nittany Lions went on to score one more touchdown in the fourth quarter with a 20-yard rush from Mark Allen. Davis was perfect in extra point attempts for the afternoon, giving Penn State a lead of 39-0.
Illinois had good field position on their final drive of the game, but a fourth down sack kept them from going anywhere. Penn State let the clock run down to finalize the win.
It was another record-breaking outing for Hackenberg; this was his nineteenth game with more than 200 passing yards, breaking his tie with Matt McGloin for the record. The Lions looked like all of their pieces were falling together in the game; both the offense and the defense alike operated at a high level while working together nearly seamlessly.
Next Week: Penn State will travel to Northwestern next week to take on the Wildcats. The time of kick-off is still to be determined.
Photo credit: GoPSUSports.com
