Penn State vs. Eastern Michigan Game Review

Penn State Fullback Zach Zwinak provided the Nittany Lions with some insurance with 2 Rushing TD's

     Last week against Syracuse, Penn State got off to a slow start before finding its stride and coming out on top with the win. Penn State got off to another rocky start versus Eastern Michigan Eagles this weekend when True Freshman Quarterback Christian Hackenberg fumbled the ball in the 1st quarter. Eagles Linebacker Hunter Matt returned the ball 11 yards for a touchdown(TD) to give Eastern Michigan a 7-0 lead over Penn State. That would be the Eagles only points of the day as Penn State would go on to score 45 unanswered points and improve their record to 2-0 on the season.

     Penn State quickly responded after the turnover with two consecutive scoring drives with a Zach Zwinak and Bill Belton rushing TD's, respectively, to give the Nittany Lions a 14-7 lead. Place Kicker Sam Ficken connected on a 39 yard field goal to extend Penn State's lead to 10 heading into the half.
    
     Penn State would start off the 2nd half with the ball, but its offense could not execute early on in the 3rd quarter and were forced to punt the ball away three times before scoring on their final drive of the quarter with another Rushing TD from Zach Zwinak, giving Penn State a 24-7 lead. From that point on, the flood gates began to open for the Nittany Lion offense!

     Christian Hackenberg would find his favorite target Allen Robinson(who finished the day with 7 receptions for 129 yards) for a 45 yard TD pass. (Hackenberg would finish the day with 311 yards through the air with 1 TD and 1 Interception) Just as Penn State's offense was finding its stride, the defense had already found its rhythm!

     The Nittany Lion defense allowed only 61 yards on the ground thanks to another strong performance by Defensive Tackle(DT) DaQuan Jones, who finished the game a sack. Defensive End C.J. Olaniyan also recorded a sack, while Glenn Carson and Austin Johnson each shared 0.5, to give Penn State three sacks in total. Penn State was dominating the run game on the defensive side, the Nittany Lions started to show some signs of life running the ball on their end as Bill Belton and Akeel Lynch scored on a run of 51 and 18 yards respectively on their final two possessions. Both Belton and Lynch rushed for 108 yards each, as Penn State rolled to an easy win over Eastern Michigan.

NOTES
 -Sam Ficken's Field Goal gives him the school record for  most consecutive Field Goals made(14)

 -

Christian Hackenberg had 311 passing yards vs Eastern Michigan, setting the Penn State record for passing yards in a game by a freshman. 

 

 - Penn State is now just 2-26 on 3rd down through two games, but 4-4 on 4th down

 

For updates when I write a new piece, "LIKE" My Facebook Page for my Sports Blog : http://www.facebook.com/pages/Nams-Noodle-Sports-Blog-FB-Page/252192688235247

Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/namsnoodle?feature=mhee