{"id":2806,"date":"2016-10-23T17:11:20","date_gmt":"2016-10-23T21:11:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordoncollegefootball.com\/?p=2806"},"modified":"2017-05-22T00:02:38","modified_gmt":"2017-05-22T04:02:38","slug":"nittany-lions-stun-buckeyes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2016\/10\/23\/nittany-lions-stun-buckeyes\/","title":{"rendered":"Nittany Lions Stun Buckeyes"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Nittany Lions<\/strong> of Penn State <\/strong>(5-2, 3-1 Big 10) just broke the college football playoff<\/strong>\u00a0wide open. Urban Meyer<\/strong> and his second-ranked Buckeyes <\/strong>(6-1, 4-1 Big 10)\u00a0simply had no answer for a tremendous, almost unbelievable fourth quarter comeback. The unranked Nittany Lions<\/strong> put Meyer’s Buckeyes<\/strong>‘ streak of 20 consecutive away wins.<\/p>\n

HOW IT ALL WENT DOWN<\/h2>\n

Over 107,000 fans white-clad fans squeezed into Beaver Stadium<\/strong> on a frigid night. The first quarter was a scoreless one in which both opponents played ferocious defense. The Buckeyes<\/strong> \u00a0began to put some distance between themselves and Penn St.<\/strong> in the second quarter. A field goal, a touchdown with a missed PAT, and a second field goal put the Buckeyes<\/strong> up by twelve. The Nittany Lions<\/strong> 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<\/strong> ahead another seven. A Nittany Lions’<\/strong> safety after a bad snap gave the Buckeyes a total of 21 points. They wouldn’t score again.<\/p>\n

A back-to-back touchdown and field goal put Penn State<\/strong> within striking range. The Buckeyes<\/strong> 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.<\/strong> ahead 24-21.<\/p>\n

The Buckeyes<\/strong> tried to catch back up, but the Nittany Lions<\/strong>‘ defense proved too much for OSU<\/strong> quarterback J.T. Barrett<\/strong>. The champion of the national championship team from two years ago couldn’t evade Penn State’s<\/strong> defenders. After a blitz and sack on fourth and long, Penn State<\/strong> kneeled it out in Buckeye<\/strong> territory.<\/p>\n

Happy Valley, Pennsylvania lived up to its name after that. Thousands of fans rushed onto the field howling their victory. James Franklin<\/strong> just got his signature win, his first over a ranked team since arriving at Penn State<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

What does this mean for the playoff?<\/h2>\n

Meyer’s<\/strong> boys are down, but not out. Not by a long shot. They lost to a weak VA Tech<\/strong> team back in 2014, but came out swinging. That team made and won the first ever college football playoff<\/strong>. On the other hand, the Buckeyes<\/strong> dropped late last season against the Spartans<\/strong> of Michigan State<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

As we’ve seen the past two seasons, it could potentially go either way for the Buckeyes<\/strong>. OSU’s<\/strong> hated rivals, the undefeated Wolverines<\/strong>, currently lead the division. Penn State<\/strong>, who have one conference loss to Michigan<\/strong>, sit beneath them. Ohio State<\/strong> is third in the division standings.<\/p>\n

Odds are that the battle for the division will still come down to “The Game,” as it is simply known to Buckeye<\/strong> and Wolverine<\/strong> fans. Should the Buckeyes<\/strong> win that highly anticipated battle, Penn State<\/strong> will be cancelled out due to their loss to Michigan<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

There’a still much football left to be played before it’s all said and done. The Buckeyes<\/strong> may sneak into the playoff, but that road just got a lot rockier last night.<\/p>\n

Main Photo:<\/p>\n

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Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/div>\n