Penn State vs. Maryland Position Grades

Oct 24, 2015; Baltimore, MD, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions quarterback Christian Hackenberg (14) pressured by Maryland Terrapins lineman Brett Kulka (96) and lineman Yannick Ngakoue (7) at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mitch Stringer-USA TODAY Sports

Quarterbacks:

Christian Hackenberg has struggled this season and really looked uncomfortable last week at Ohio State. against Maryland, Hackenberg looked like a new player. He was comfortable in the pocket and was reading the defense well, making pre-snap reads and then changing the play when necessary.

Hackenberg put up good numbers against the Terps and made big plays when he needed to. He completed just 13 passes, but was able to make them count. He averaged 24 yards per completion and finished the game with 315 yards and three touchdowns.

Now, critics will say that some of the long completed passes were actually not thrown well, but were caught because of great plays by the wide receivers. While that may be true to an extent, there were still several great throws.

With numerous scouts sitting in the press box, Hackenberg had arguably one of his best performances of the season. He did lose a fumble in the game but avoided throwing an interception.

Overall, it was a great performance by the junior quarterback and one that needs to be repeated in order for the Nittany Lions to have continued success this year.

Backup Trace McSorley entered the game for one play when Hackenberg was banged up and was sacked for a loss of five yards.

Grade: A

Next: Running Backs