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Penn State Football: Miles Sanders, Nittany Lions run all over Illinois

By Barry Leonard Jr.

CHAMPAIGN, IL - SEPTEMBER 21: Miles Sanders #24 of the Penn State Nittany Lions runs the ball as Bobby Roundtree #97 of the Illinois Fighting Illini pursues during the game at Memorial Stadium on September 21, 2018 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
CHAMPAIGN, IL - SEPTEMBER 21: Miles Sanders #24 of the Penn State Nittany Lions runs the ball as Bobby Roundtree #97 of the Illinois Fighting Illini pursues during the game at Memorial Stadium on September 21, 2018 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /
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Penn State football used an effective ground game to knock off Illinois Friday night. 

In what could have easily been defined as a trap game for Penn State football, the Nittany Lions certainly had some scary moments, particularly earlier in the game. Down early in the third quarter, the Nittany Lions roared back with 42 unanswered points to leave Illinois with the 63-24 victory.

Penn State overcame a slow start and some inconsistent play to pull away with the big victory.

They were a lot of great individual performances for Penn State against Illinois, but it was the breakout performance of running back Miles Sanders that highlighted the night. Sanders, who lived in the shadow of Saquon Barkley the last two seasons, had a career night versus the Illini, rushing for 200 yards and three scores.

Sanders paced a Penn State ground game that put up 387 rushing yards and six touchdowns.

True freshman running back Ricky Slade ran for 94 yards and two touchdowns, while quarterback Trace McSorley contributed 92 yards on the ground.

Dating back to last year, Friday night was the seventh straight game for Penn State with at least 200 rushing yards.

McSorley continued to fill up the stat sheet in his senior year, throwing for 160 yards and three touchdowns.

Tight end Jonathan Holland was the leading receiver, pulling in three receptions for 53 yards. Perhaps the best sign of the night for Penn State — wide receiver Juwan Johnson, who has struggled to catch the ball all season, had four catches for 51 yards and a touchdown.

Freshman phenom KJ Hamler had two catches for 41 yards and a score.

Overall, Penn State racked up 581 total yards against the Illini.

However, for as good as it was on offense for Penn State, it was the complete opposite for much of the contest on defense. The Nittany Lions really struggled to stop the Illinois rushing attack and appeared to be on their heels for the first half of the game.

Illinois put up 245 yards on the ground and 409 total. The Illini gave Penn State a scare after scoring in the third quarter to take the lead, but eventually faded down the stretch.

Defensive back Garrett Taylor led the Nittany Lions with seven total tackles. Linebacker Jan Johnson had one of the best games of his career, recording six total tackles and an interception.

Penn State head coach James Franklin certainly has some areas of concern for his team moving forward, but the Nittany Lions are 4-0 and can now focus on next week’s huge home contest with Ohio State.

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