McSorley throws for 376 yards and four touchdowns in win

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – It was a historic Saturday night in Beaver Stadium, led by a 376-yard, four-touchdown passing performance by quarterback Trace McSorley and a second-half shutout on defense, No. 7 Penn State defeated Michigan State, 45-12, to clinch a share of the Big Ten East Division title and earn a trip to the Big Ten Championship next Saturday in Indianapolis.

It’s Penn State’s (10-2, 8-1 Big Ten) second Big Ten divisional championship and it will be its first championship game appearance since the conference adopted the format in 2011. Penn State owns three overall Big Ten titles and two divisional crowns since joining the conference in 1993.

The victory extended Penn State’s winning streak to eight for its longest since tallying nine in a row in 2008. It’s also Penn State’s sixth 10-win regular season since joining the Big Ten and its first since 2009. Penn State has eight Big Ten wins for just the second time, and the Nittany Lions also finished the regular season 7-0 at home for the first time since 2008.

Penn State trailed Michigan State (3-9, 1-8 Big Ten), 12-10 at halftime, but true to form, the Nittany Lions rallied in the second half, outscoring the Spartans, 35-0.

McSorley led an offensive onslaught in the third quarter on Penn State’s first three offensive possessions, throwing touchdown passes of 34 yards to Chris Godwin, 45 yards to Mike Gesicki and 59 yards again to Godwin to build a 31-12 lead.

Senior linebacker Brandon Bell led the Penn State defense with 18 tackles. The unit surrendered 256 yards and four field goals in the first half, but yielded just 87 yards and no scores in the second half. The Nittany Lion defense has now held opponents without a touchdown in back-to-back games for the first time since 2009 and the first time since 2006 in Big Ten games.

Turning Point
The Penn State defense failed to get a stop in the first half, but did not allow a touchdown, and the Nittany Lions only trailed by two at the break. The defense forced a three-and-out after Michigan State received the kickoff to open the second half, and it was all Penn State from there, as McSorley threw touchdowns on the Lions’ next three drives to open a 31-12 lead.

Difference Makers

QB Trace McSorley – Trace McSorley completed 17-of-23 passes for a career-high 376 yards and a personal-best four touchdowns, going 10-for-14 for 265 yards and the four touchdowns after halftime. He extended his consecutive games with a touchdown pass streak to 13, dating back to last season’s TaxSlayer Bowl, and his 12-straight games this season ties a program record first set by Matt McGloin in 2012. It was his fourth 300-yard passing game of the season, tying a program mark held by Matt McGloin (2012) and Christian Hackenberg (2013 and 2014).

WR Chris Godwin – Godwin enjoyed his first 100-plus receiving yard game since the Temple game in September and the eighth of his career, finishing with five catches for 135 yards. He had touchdowns of 34 and 59 yards, and his nine touchdowns this season break the Penn State record for touchdown receptions by a junior.

TE Mike Gesicki – Gesicki hauled in a pair of passes to total 64 yards, including a 45-yard touchdown in the third quarter. With the 64 yards, he set a new Penn State record for receiving yards in a season by tight end with 610.

RB Andre Robinson – Robinson scored the game’s final two touchdowns, scoring a 14-yard rush and a career-long 40-yard reception. He led Penn State with 32 rushing yards on three carries.

RB Saquon Barkley – In the second quarter, Barkley scored Penn State’s first touchdown of the game, leaping over a Michigan State defender for a 1-yard score. It was his 22nd career rushing touchdown to give him sole possession of 15th place on the Penn State career list. His 14 rushing yards in the game gave him 1,219 for the season, moving him into 12th place all-time at Penn State

LB Brandon Bell – Bell tied his career high for tackles of 18. His other 18-tackle game came against Ohio State earlier this season.

Pass Rush – Defensive tackles Kevin Givens and Parker Cothren and linebacker Manny Bowen recorded a sack each, while defensive linemen Curtis Cothran and Evan Schwan combined for a sack.

Penn State will face No. 6 Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship game Saturday at 8 p.m. in Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. The game will be televised on FOX.