The Nittany Lions of Penn State (5-2, 3-1 Big 10) just broke the college football playoff wide open. Urban Meyer and his second-ranked Buckeyes (6-1, 4-1 Big 10) simply had no answer for a tremendous, almost unbelievable fourth quarter comeback. The unranked Nittany Lions put Meyer’s Buckeyes‘ streak of 20 consecutive away wins.
HOW IT ALL WENT DOWN
Over 107,000 fans white-clad fans squeezed into Beaver Stadium on a frigid night. The first quarter was a scoreless one in which both opponents played ferocious defense. The Buckeyes began to put some distance between themselves and Penn St. in the second quarter. A field goal, a touchdown with a missed PAT, and a second field goal put the Buckeyes up by twelve. The Nittany Lions took their first blood with mere seconds left in the half. A 74-yard run on a kick return five minutes into the second half put OSU ahead another seven. A Nittany Lions’ safety after a bad snap gave the Buckeyes a total of 21 points. They wouldn’t score again.
A back-to-back touchdown and field goal put Penn State within striking range. The Buckeyes attempted to give themselves a bit of cushion with a field goal, but that would doom them. The kick was blocked and returned for a 60-yard score to put Penn St. ahead 24-21.
The Buckeyes tried to catch back up, but the Nittany Lions‘ defense proved too much for OSU quarterback J.T. Barrett. The champion of the national championship team from two years ago couldn’t evade Penn State’s defenders. After a blitz and sack on fourth and long, Penn State kneeled it out in Buckeye territory.
Happy Valley, Pennsylvania lived up to its name after that. Thousands of fans rushed onto the field howling their victory. James Franklin just got his signature win, his first over a ranked team since arriving at Penn State.
What does this mean for the playoff?
Meyer’s boys are down, but not out. Not by a long shot. They lost to a weak VA Tech team back in 2014, but came out swinging. That team made and won the first ever college football playoff. On the other hand, the Buckeyes dropped late last season against the Spartans of Michigan State.
As we’ve seen the past two seasons, it could potentially go either way for the Buckeyes. OSU’s hated rivals, the undefeated Wolverines, currently lead the division. Penn State, who have one conference loss to Michigan, sit beneath them. Ohio State is third in the division standings.
Odds are that the battle for the division will still come down to “The Game,” as it is simply known to Buckeye and Wolverine fans. Should the Buckeyes win that highly anticipated battle, Penn State will be cancelled out due to their loss to Michigan.
There’a still much football left to be played before it’s all said and done. The Buckeyes may sneak into the playoff, but that road just got a lot rockier last night.
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