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Penn State Football: Quarterback report post 2017 Fiesta Bowl

By Collin Wieder

GLENDALE, AZ - DECEMBER 30: Marcus Allen #2 and Trace McSorley #9 of the Penn State Nittany Lions hold up the championship trophy after beating the Washington Huskies 35-28 in the Playstation Fiesta Bowl at University of Phoenix Stadium on December 30, 2017 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images)
GLENDALE, AZ - DECEMBER 30: Marcus Allen #2 and Trace McSorley #9 of the Penn State Nittany Lions hold up the championship trophy after beating the Washington Huskies 35-28 in the Playstation Fiesta Bowl at University of Phoenix Stadium on December 30, 2017 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) /
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Trace McSorley put the stamp on a fantastic junior season in the Fiesta Bowl win. Penn State football wouldn’t have the same success without him.

It takes steel nerves to ignore turnovers and play elite football at the quarterback position. Penn State football QB Trace McSorley accomplished the above statement in leading the Nittany Lions to a 35-28 Fiesta Bowl win.

For the majority of the night, McSorley threw the ball accurately. He went 32-of-41 for 342 yards, two touchdowns against two interceptions, while rushing for 60 yards. In addition, the third-year QB sparked the team at the right times.

On the first drive the run game started slow. Facing third and 11, McSorley completed a short pass to Saquon Barkley and he took it for a first down. A few plays after, he dropped an absolute dime into the arms of DaeSean Hamilton for the 7-0 lead.

Now, he wasn’t perfect. He tossed an interception in Washington territory on the ensuing drive, but he rallied to lead three straight touchdown drives making it, 28-7.

Furthermore, he converted key third downs with precision darts into the teeth of the defense. He threw away from coverage to protect his receivers including a couple of lasers to tight end Mike Gesicki. His completion to DeAndre Thompkins down the sideline wasn’t the perfect throw, but he didn’t put the ball in harm’s way. McSorley threw away from the coverage and made sure Thompkins could get it or it was going out of bounds.

In the second half, the offense slowed up but their lone score answered a Washington’s score. The momentum in that touchdown means so much more than seven points. Washington cut the lead to seven points and had all the momentum (Video Courtesy of Victors Valiant).

McSorley and the offense stopped the bleeding going 3-for-3 through the air for 38 yards and a second touchdown to Hamilton. He also rushed for a 24-yard gain to get the drive going. Once Penn State football went ahead by two possessions again, they held on and won the game.

McSorley tossed another pick in the second half, but he burned the clock well on the missed field goal drive. Penn State melted 6:18 off the clock leaving UW with just 34 seconds to go 72 yards. He completed two passes on third downs to keep the drive alive and the offense off the field.

In fact, he did a nice job of avoiding three-and-outs recording just one the entire game. Anytime an offense moves that efficiently – the quarterback deserves high praise.

Must Read: Penn State Football: Nittany Lions hold on to beat Washington in the Fiesta Bowl

Overall, he completed passes to nine different receivers including four with at least five catches on the night. With likely one more year remaining, the junior QB displayed why Penn State will be a contender if Barkley departs. There’s few QBs that play with a swagger and bravado like McSorley.

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