Furious Second Half Comeback Not Enough, Huskies Fall to Penn State, 28-25
· Yahoo Sports
Coming into this game, it was thought by some fans that last week could’ve been a turning point, and there were reasons for optimism. Those reasons were instead a source of pessimism for much of the first half. Apart from a 14 play, 65 yard drive (in which Jayden Limar was resurgent, rushing for 29 yards) which resulted in a field goal, the Huskies seemed off. Demond Williams wasn’t hitting his receivers, often overthrowing, finishing the first half with a line of 6-14 for 36 yards, including 8 straight incompletions. The defense did Demond no favors themselves, getting gashed in the run game by Carson Hansen, who scored early on a pretty easy touchdown run from 12 yards out. Rocco Becht also looked like an experienced quarterback, connecting with Chase Sowell on a 45 yard touchdown pass, en route to a 240 yard day. With 2:44 left in the first half, Cam Wallace ran right through the hole created for him by the Nittany Lion front and joined the scoring with a 44 yard touchdown. The score at that point was 28-6.
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After a Penn State punt, Demond got back to work, going 4-6 for 27 yards on the drive, adding in a 9 yard rush, as Tyler Robles made a 47 yard field goal to push the deficit to 19. After giving up another 36 yard pass to Sowell, the defense stiffened up and stopped the Nittany Lions when they tried a 4th down hook and lateral play, giving UW the ball at their own 40 yard line. 6 plays later, Williams found Baron Naone wide open from 5 yards out, and succeeded on the 2 point conversion attempt, finding Rashid Williams. After the defense forced a punt, Demond led another drive, but was intercepted by Ibn McDaniels. Thankfully the defense came through again, with Rocco Becht being sacked by Jacob Manu and Alex McLaughlin, forcing a Nittany Lion punt.
For that moment, with the score at 28-17, the Huskies looked like they could pull off the impossible 2 weeks in a row. And for a while, it seemed like they just might. Demond leaned on Dezmen Roebuck, Chris Lawson and his own athletic ability to carry him down the field, eventually finding Dezmen Roebuck on a low touchdown pass, to make the score 28-23, with 7:40 left in the fourth. On the ensuing 2 point play, Williams scrambled, evading a host of Nittany Lion defenders, finding Baron Naone who made the catch with a toe tap, making the game a very winnable one, which had seemed impossible a couple of hours earlier. It was then up to the defense to make the necessary plays to put the offense in position to win the game, something that they were able to do quite well in the second half.
With 3:51 left in the game, on an absolutely pivotal 3rd down for both teams, Carson Hansen ran right and was tackled by Rylon Dillard Allen for 3 yards, short of the first down. However, upon closer inspection, there was actually 12 Huskies on defense. Though the Huskies only had 4 penalties for 32 yards, that illegal procedure penalty (in addition to the targeting on Jacob Manu) was the straw that broke the defense’s back. From there, Penn State was able to run and kneel out the game clock to secure a win, without scoring a single point in the second half.
At 5-4, it would be an understatement to say this season’s been disappointing. It’s been frustrating to watch, and that frustration has been compounded by games like this. Because this team can have it together. Demond Williams can be an electric quarterback. The run game can be good. The line can open up holes for the running backs. But this Husky team hasn’t shown that they can’t play a complete game, at least not this year. With 3 conference games left, it’s now a question of if they can make a bowl game. In order to do that, they’ll have to play a complete game. Questions still remain as to whether that can be done. With Penn State, they were halfway there, but halfway doesn’t count.