Penn State Beats Washington After Second-Half Collapse

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Nov 7, 2026; Seattle, Washington, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions running back Carson Hansen (21) celebrates after rushing for a touchdown against the Washington Huskies during the first quarter at Husky Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe N… | Source: Lastwordonsports.com - Kate Pearson Halyburton, EditorPenn State beats Washington to earn its second straight Big Ten win. The Nittany Lions (5-4, 2-4 Big Ten) defeated the Huskies (5-4, 2-4 Big Ten) 28-25 on Saturday.Penn State held a 28-6 lead at halftime, but Washington’s 19 unanswered points in the second half weren’t enough to complete the comeback.Chase Sowell and Carson Hansen were the stars of the game for the Nittany Lions. Sowell finished with four catches for 125 yards and a touchdown, while Hansen had a touchdown and his first 100-yard rushing game in a Penn State uniform.

Penn State Beats Washington 28-25

Penn State Jumps to Early Two-Score Lead

The Nittany Lions started down 3-0 after the Huskies drove 65 yards in 14 plays and settled for a 29-yard field goal. The long drive was sustained by Washington’s 135th-ranked run game, which gained 53 yards. Washington only recorded 81 rushing yards the rest of the game.It didn’t take long for Penn State to answer, though. A bad snap set the Nittany Lions back seven yards right away, but the next six plays all went for over 10 yards. Hansen notched his sixth touchdown of the season with a 12-yard run to put the visitors up 7-3.Possession returned to Penn State after a Washington punt. Rocco Becht threw a perfect over-the-shoulder pass to Sowell for a 32-yard gain, then Becht ran for 11 yards on three carries. Sowell missed last week’s win over Purdue with an injury.Becht stayed hot as he found Zay Robinson for a 24-yard touchdown on third-and-10.

The Nittany Lions Stay Hot

Neither team was able to do much on the first three drives of the second half until the Nittany Lions added to the score column for the third time of the opening half. Becht launched a 45-yard bomb, and Sowell came down with it through double coverage for a 21-3 lead.Washington pieced together its best drive since the opening possession with an eight-play, 62-yard series that yielded another field goal.Penn State got Cam Wallace, the leading rusher from last week’s victory, his third touch of the game, and he took it for a 46-yard touchdown to make it 28-6 just before halftime.

Washington Wakes Up

Washington started to look alive in the second half. Penn State punted on its first drive, and the Huskies nailed a 47-yard field goal.

Sowell made a ridiculous one-handed grab for a 36-yard gain, putting him over 100 receiving yards on the day. But a hook-and-ladder on fourth down failed to convert, and the score stayed at 28-9.

Washington then put together its first touchdown drive of the game, and added a 2-point conversion to make it 28-17. It was a strong drive for quarterback Demond Williams Jr., who had a 39-yard run, then hit Baron Naone for a 4-yard score, followed by the conversion pass to Rashid Williams.Penn State had to punt again after an 11-yard sack set the Nittany Lions back.

Penn State Survives the Huskies

The Huskies reached midfield in pursuit of making it a one-score game, but Syracuse transfer Ibn McDaniels secured his first-career interception. Penn State’s offense continued to struggle and failed to convert off the turnover.Williams’ 23-yard run and his pass to Chris Laswson for 21 yards set the Huskies up at the Penn State 6-yard line, again threatening to make it a one-score game. This time, they converted with a 6-yard connection between Williams and Dezmen Roebuck.Williams then made a miraculous pass on the 2-point conversion and got it to Naone to narrow the score to 28-25, Penn State.Replay review determined that Washington linebacker Jacob Manu committed targeting on Becht’s third-down run and was subsequently ejected as Penn State’s drive remained alive. Hansen then broke off a 36-yard run to surpass 100 yards on the day as he came up just shy of the red zone.An illegal substitution on the Huskies saved the Nittany Lions again when they came up short on third down from the 17-yard line. Penn State then converted a fourth-and-1 from the 3-yard line and bled out the clock to secure the 28-25 win.

The Last Word

The first half of this game was perhaps the most impressive Penn State has looked all season. The offense was cruising, while the defense swarmed Washington’s attack. But the second half reminded everyone of the Wisconsin loss earlier this year.That loss to the Badgers spurred a four-game losing streak that lasted until the bye week. But the silver lining is that Penn State didn’t lose this game. It may have felt similar to the Wisconsin game, but the Nittany Lions were actually able to pull this one out.Penn State still looks like a work in progress, but it’s hard to complain too much when wins are being tallied.Main Photo: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

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