Iowa’s upset bid falls short against fourth-ranked Penn State
By Pat Harty
IOWA CITY, Iowa – The Iowa football team flirted with another upset under the stars at Kinnick Stadium on Saturday, but this time it was Iowa’s nationally-ranked opponent that had the miracle finish.
Receiver Juwan Johnson caught a 7-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Trace McSorley as time expired to lift fourth-ranked Penn State to a 21-19 victory before a nationally televised audience.
The Nittany Lions drove 80 yards in the final 1 minute and 42 seconds to avoid the upset.
“This game sucks, but you’ve got to move on from it,” said Iowa All-Big Ten linebacker Josey Jewell.
Penn State running back Saquon Barkley had an incredible performance with 358 all-purpose yards and one touchdown. His total is the second most all-purpose yards that Iowa has surrendered behind the 368 all-purpose yards gained by former Stanford running back Christian McCaffrey in the 2016 Rose Bowl.
“You just have to hit him square every time if you want to bring him down,” Jewell said of the 5-foot-11, 230-pound Barkley.
The Iowa defense struggled to do that throughout the game as Barkley ran through, over and around his defenders.
But even with Barkley running wild, Iowa still was in position to pull off the upset after senior running back Akrum Wadley broke loose for a 35-yard touchdown run to give the Hawkeyes a 19-15 lead with 1:42 left to play.
The circumstances were similar to last season when Iowa defeated then No. 2 Michigan 14-13 on a 33-yard field goal by Keith Duncan as time expired at Kinnick Stadium.
Few had picked Iowa to beat Michigan last season, and it was the same with Penn State, which entered Saturday’s game as a 12-point favorite.
Iowa managed to stay within striking distance despite mostly sputtering on offense. The Hawkeyes were held to just 273 total yards, while Penn State finished with 579 yards, including 295 rushing yards on 51 attempts.
Penn State ran 99 plays on offense, which more than doubled Iowa’s 45 plays.
And yet, the game still was competitive throughout, thanks partly to the Iowa defense, which bent, but rarely broke until the end.
“I’m speaking on behalf of the entire coaching staff, just incredibly proud of the effort and the toughness that our guys played with,” said Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz. “They just did a heck of a job. We told them at the beginning of the week that they were going to have to compete out there hard and play with tremendous effort and hustle every single snap.
“I think that’s what the team did tonight. We played a real good football team. And that game is illustrative of what it takes to win in the conference.”
Saturday’s game was a drastic change from last season’s game against Penn State when Barkley and his cohorts crushed Iowa 41-14 in State College, Pa.
The only real similarity between the two games was Barkley’s dominance.
“The running back is a special player,” Ferentz said of Barkley. “I don’t know if I’ve seen many better, any better.”
Iowa defensive end Anthony Nelson used his 6-foot-7 frame to block a 31-yard field goal attempt with 2:42 left to play, and with Penn State clinging to a 15-13 lead.
Iowa took over at its own 20-yard line and Penn State was penalized 15 yards on the first play of the drive, giving Iowa a first down at its own 35-yard line.
Iowa quarterback Nate Stanley then completed a 22-yard pass to Matt Vandenberg who was tackled at the Penn State 35-yard line.
That set the stage for Wadley’s 35-yard touchdown scamper, which was his second touchdown in the fourth quarter. He also scored on a 70-yard pass from Stanley with 10:02 left in the final quarter.
Iowa went for the two-point conversion, but Stanley’s pass to tight end T.J. Hockenson was knocked down in the end zone.
Iowa went three plays-and-out on its first offensive possession in the third quarter.
Penn State then drove deep into Iowa territory, but had to settle for a 21-yard field goal by Tyler Davis with 10:42 left in the third quarter.
That was the theme throughout Saturday’s game as the Iowa defense surrendered lot of yards, but very points until the end.
"Obviously, the first thing you have to do is give the University of Iowa a lot of credit," said Penn State coach james Franklin. "They had great plan tonight.
"This is a tough venue to play in. First time being here and it was electric in here tonight."
Penn State marched 75 yards in eight plays for a touchdown that came on an 8-yard run by Barkley wiyj 5:16 left in the third quarter. Barkley extended the ball past the goal line before stepping out of bounds.
Penn State was driving again late in the third quarter when freshman defensive end A.J. Epenesa forced a fumble after hitting McSorley in the pocket.
Jewell recovered the fumble and then Wadley broke loose for a 20-yard run to give Iowa a first down at the Penn State 20-yard line when the third quarter ended.
The drive stalled, and then fizzled, when Miguel Recinos’s 36-yard field-goal attempt was blocked with 13:30 left to play.
The Iowa offense had performed woefully throughout the first half until Stanley completed a 21-yard touchdown pass to Nick Easley with 37 seconds left in the second quarter.
Jewell helped set up the touchdown by returning a McSorley interception to the Penn State 21.
It only took Stanley one play to hook up with Easley in the end zone.
Iowa led 7-5 at halftime despite being held to 54 yards and despite surrendering 219 yards to the Nittany Lions.
Penn State scored two points when Wadley was tackled in the end zone for a safety with 7;40 left in the second quarter. The played was doomed from the start as Wadley took a pitch from Stanley deep in his own end zone with Penn State defenders in pursuit.
Penn State owned the first quarter from a statistical standpoint, gaining 114 yards to just 19 for Iowa.
The Nittany Lions drove to the Iowa 1-yard line late in the first quarter, but had to settle for a 19-yard field goal by Davis with 1:01 remaining after the Iowa defense had stiffened.
The Iowa offense went three-and-out on its first two drives of the game, with a four-yard scramble by Stanley the longest gain.
After missing on his first five passing attempts, Stanley finally connected with tight end Noah Fant for a 13-yard completion on the final play of the first quarter. However, that was Fant's only catch in the game and the only catch for an Iowa tight end.
The Hawkeyes were also just 3-of-11 on third-down conversions, while Penn State converted on 3-of-4 fourth-down plays, including the game-winning touchdown pass.
Iowa now has to get over the devastation from losing to Penn State with a road game at Michigan State up next this coming Saturday.
"The only way to go is up," said Iowa cornerback Josh Jackson. "You know, we matched up with the fourth-ranked team in the nation, a great team. We came out and played hard. We think we can play with anybody in the country. So we have to come out and stay poised, stay focused and finish."