Penn State players of the game against Ohio State

Penn State dropped a heartbreaker to Ohio State Saturday night, but there were still some good individual performances that stood out. 

Saturday night’s battle between Penn State and Ohio State was billed as one of the biggest and best college football games of the season, and it certainly lived up to its hype. Unfortunately for the majority of the crowd inside of Beaver Stadium, the night ended with yet another shocking fourth-quarter collapse against the Buckeyes.

Reminiscent of last year’s battle in Columbus, Penn State held a double-digit lead late in the game, but was unable to hang on. Ohio State escaped the White Out in Happy Valley with a 27-26 victory.

Aside from the horrible final five minutes of the game, it was a very good performance by Penn State. The result wasn’t want anyone affiliated with Penn State would have hoped for,  but it’s time to focus on the positive individual performances from Saturday night.

Offense – Trace McSorley, Quarterback      

Trace McSorley was the best player on the field for the Nittany Lions Saturday night, period.

The senior quarterback did everything he could to help his team win. Which is why Penn State’s final play of the game — a fourth-and-five — was a draw to running back Miles Sanders. Head coach James Franklin chose to take the ball out of the hands of his best player.

McSorley was a threat all night running and throwing the ball. He completed 16-of-32 passes for 286 yards and two touchdowns. He was the most dangerous runner on the field, rushing 25 times for a whopping 175 yards, including a long of 51 yards.

Already in the Heisman conversation before the season started, McSorley shone bright on a national stage Saturday night and didn’t do anything to hurt his chances for the prestigious award.

McSorley has been one of the most important players all season, and that was no different against Ohio State.

Honorable Mention: WR KJ Hamler, TE Pat Freiermuth

Defense – Koa Farmer, Linebacker 

To be honest, it was hard to pick a player of the game on defense.

Statistically, the Nittany Lions did well to hold the potent Ohio State offense to less than 30 points. That was clearly a win. However, there were numerous missed tackles throughout the game. Also, the defense completely melted down during the final five minutes of the game and allowed two back-to-back Ohio State touchdowns.

As far as the numbers on defense, the player who stood out was linebacker Koa Farmer. The senior has struggled for much of the season, but played a solid game Saturday. He recorded eight total tackles, and, along with fellow linebacker Cam Brown, led the middle level of the Penn State defense.

Honorable Mention: LB Cam Brown, S Nick Scott