Penn State 45, Appalachian State 38: Survive and Advance

It was not easy but the Penn State Nittany Lions are 1-0! The Nittany Lions survived 45-38 in overtime against Appalachian State on Saturday afternoon.

Saturday’s game was very stressful. As I told my youngest son, when I die at 75 instead of 77 you can blame this game. While I was still stunned by pleasant end of the game, I figured that I would check out and see what people were saying on twitter? Well, as you may expect, it was all over the board!

Penn State’s offense was led by Heisman Trophy candidate quarterback Trace McSorley. At times on Saturday, especially when the team needed it, Trace was taking over the game.

Trace finished the game 21/36 for 230 yards and a touchdown through the air. On the ground, he ran for 53 yards and a touchdown. He also orchestrated a late game tying drive in the game’s final 1:47, once again showing his clutch gene.

Another key player in that final drive? Redshirt freshman KJ Hamler. After returning a kick to the Appalachian State 48-yard line, Hamler also caught the game tying touchdown with :47 seconds left in the game.

For the first game of the season, it was a very unexpected journey. In retrospect it was very entertaining, but I’m not sure that it was the type of game that Penn State fans expected, or even wanted, to watch on the first day of September.

When Miles Sanders crossed the end zone in overtime, Penn State still had some work to do to hold on defense.

Heather Weikel

Amani Oruwariye got the interception to seal the victory.

Let’s all catch our breath, relax, and let this one soak in. 1-0. That’s what the record says.