Patrick Maguire
Penn State vs. Ohio State is the game I look forward to every year, as I root for the Penn State Nittany Lions during this matchup. The last time the Nittany Lions beat the Buckeyes was in 2016 at Beaver Stadium on the main campus of Penn State. Penn State won on a blocked field goal returned for a touchdown, and Beaver Stadium was going wild as all of the Nittany Lions fans were wearing white. Since 2016, though, Penn State has yet to beat Ohio State during the season. As a Penn State fan in 2023, I was beyond confident that the Nittany Lions were going to beat the streak and win for the first time since 2016. With quarterback Drew Allar throwing for 12 touchdowns on the season and 1,254 yards, and the unstoppable backfield of Kaytron Allen and Nic Singleton, I truly felt like this offense could not be stopped.
Unfortunately for me, the game didn’t turn out in my favor as Ohio State defeated Penn State 20-12. The game was horrible as Penn State could do nothing on the offensive side of the ball. They only scored one touchdown all day and that came with 29 seconds left in the fourth quarter. They also went 1-16 on third down and the offensive line wasn’t helping Drew Allar out at all, as he was scrambling all day. He had no time in the pocket to throw the ball and his receivers were not helping him at all, as they were dropping a lot of passes. The running game couldn’t do anything as Kaytron Allen only had 26 yards on the ground and Nic Singleton only had 48 yards. It was a complete mess on the offensive end, but on the defensive end, for Penn State they played well, only leaving 20 points and putting a lot of pressure on Buckeyes quarterback Kyle McCord.
Ohio State, on the other hand, played a phenomenal game on defense, putting pressure on Drew Allar everytime he snapped the ball, and not even letting him take a shot downfield. They played great all around as they got plenty of sacks on Drew Allar. For the Ohio State offense, it was a struggle, as Penn State’s defense was all over them playing great coverage. Along with that, the Ohio State offensive line struggled to block. Buckeyes star wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. always came up in a big way when his team needed him. He converted a lot of big 3rd down conversions and scored the game-winning touchdown for the Buckeyes. For both teams, though, they didn’t live up to expectations, struggling on the offensive end, especially when both teams put up at least 30 points per game.
Regardless, Ohio State got the win and will improve to 7-0 on the season and they will move on to play at Wisconsin next Saturday at 7:30 P.M. on NBC. As for Penn State, they fall to 6-1 and will be back home at Beaver Stadium to take on Indiana at 12:00 P.M. on CBS.
