Penn State football players of the game vs Michigan

After a 42-13 victory over the Michigan Wolverines, the Penn State football team is now 7-0 this season including 4-0 in Big Ten play.

The Penn State football team is now 7-0 this season. After annihilating the No. 19 Michigan Wolverines 42-13, the Nittany Lions are also 4-0 in Big Ten Conference play. Now, the second-ranked Nittany Lions are gearing up for a top ten matchup against the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Before moving on to the Buckeyes, we will recap this past weekend’s beatdown of Michigan. After losing to the Wolverines 49-10 last season, this 42-13 victory over the Wolverines was extremely satisfying for the Nittany Lions.

Here is a look at which Nittany Lion players had the best night on Saturday and earned player of the game honors from Victory Bell Rings.

Offense – Quarterback Trace McSorley

Saturday night was the 21st start of Trace McSorley’s Penn State career and this start may have been his best one yet. Despite a first quarter interception, McSorley was excellent in the Nittany Lions’ 42-13 beatdown of Michigan.

Trace McSorley finished the night 17-for-26 with 282 yards and a touchdown through the air. McSorley also used his legs to terrify the Wolverines’ top ranked defense all night long. He finished the game with 76 yards on the ground and a trio of rushing touchdowns. It was his first career multi-rushing touchdown game.

More from Victory Bell Rings

Throughout the night the Nittany Lions utilized option and zone read runs. On these plays, Wolverine defenders kept selling out to stop Saquon Barkley. This created an opportunity for McSorley to make plays with his legs and he did just that.

In fact, McSorley’s performance earned him Walter Camp National Offensive Player of the Week honors. Last night showed that Penn State’s offense is much more than just Saquon Barkley.

Honorable mention: RB Saquon Barkley, WR DaeSean Hamilton

Defense – Linebacker Jason Cabinda

Penn State’s defense was embarrassed by Michigan a year ago. As a result, Brent Pry’s unit played with a chip on their shoulder and a purpose on Saturday night. The defense as a whole went on to play an excellent game and it was led by MIKE linebacker and defensive captain Jason Cabinda.

The senior leader finished the night with 13 tackles, a sack, and he forced a fumble. All night long Cabinda was flying around the field like a missile and kept finding his way to the football. Cabinda was also crucial in lining up the Nittany Lion defense and identify Michigan offensive formations and tendencies all night long.

After struggling in non-conference play, Cabinda and Penn State’s linebackers continue to be excellent in Big Ten play.

Honorable mention: CB Christian Campbell, LB Koa Farmer

Special Teams – K

icker Tyler Davis

The 2017 season has been a struggle for kicker Tyler Davis. On Saturday night, however, Davis looked more like his 2015/2016 self.

Davis was perfect on extra point attempts and booted a touchback on kickoffs. While Davis was not tested in the field goal department on Saturday night it was great to see him be perfect on extra points and have a strong game with his kickoffs. Hopefully this will be the start of Davis getting his confidence back and lead to him finishing the season strong.

Honorable mention: WR Irv Charles, P Blake Gillikin

Next: Penn State dominates Michigan

That will do it for this week. After thumping 19th ranked Michigan on Saturday night the second ranked Nittany Lions now prepare for a top-10 showdown with Ohio State at 3:30 next Saturday from the Horseshoe in Columbus.

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