Game 7 Recap: Penn State 48, Wisconsin 7

Pregame

Look who's back. Could you imagine a PSU game without the Blue Band?

Well, in the Roundtable we guessed Joe was would be on the field. We were clearly wrong. It was probably announced last Sunday and we just missed it.

1st Quarter

The first couple drives of this game, if you could even call them drives, were trash.

PJ Hill got three straight carries and got nowhere. Punt.

PSU got the ball and got a big gain, then punted four plays later.

John Clay then got three carries for some big yards. Wisconsin shot themselves in the foot, then Maybin (read: BEAST) chased down Evridge in the backfield for a loss. PUNT.

Fearing the inevitable Derrick Williams return, Brad Nortman punts the ball fifteen yards to be sure Williams doesn't get his hands on the ball.

Kevin Kelly says, "skip the first three downs, I can knock it down from here."

They didn't skip the first three downs, but KK did drill one home from 5o.
He has turned out to be quite the reliable kicker.

3-0

Upon getting the ball back, PJ Hill got two rushes. He ran for nine, setting up a short second down.

Most teams would take second and one and try some sort of play down field, relying on third down to convert that short first down.

Wisconsin hadn't passed the ball yet, no reason to start now.

No passing plays?
"PJ Hill approves of this method." -PJ Hill

On second and 1, the PSU D-line knocks that stupid grin off of PJ's face when they stop him in the backfield for a loss of two yards.

That set up a third and three and on that play Ollie Ogbu lead the jailbreak and got the sack.

You better check yourself.

As the first quarter ended you should have noticed two things:
1. Wisconsin had attempted one pass, an incompletion.
2. The Wisconsin student section was still half empty.

2nd Quarter

PSU started a drive at the end of the first at their own 49. It seemed like every drive was starting at or near mid-field, and it would only be a matter of time before they punched one in.

On this drive, all but one play went for positive yardage.

The drive culminated with an option to Royster that he walked in from two yards out. Clark took a hell of a shot on the play, but Holly Rowe was quick to inform us that he laughed it off.

10-0

Realizing they were quickly getting into some serious trouble, Wisconsin decide to come out throwing the ball. Three attempts, three incompletions. It was time for a punt. Somewhere in there Maybin knocked down one of those pass attempts. He's everywhere.

Upon the reception of said punt Williams decide he wasn't going to let anyone touch him, and took it back 63 yards.

Shot out of a cannon. Get it?
It's a big blue and white cannon and, ah, nevermind.


17-0
And it was beginning to feel like the rout was on.

It felt like PSU had just knocked the life out of Camp Randall, but those Wisconsin kids weren't ready to give up quite yet.

Travis Beckum took a reception 42 yards into PSU territory. John Clay piled up some runs and moved the ball even further.

"PJ Hill does not approve of this method." - PJ Hill

A big run by Everidge got the ball to the PSU 6, and then finally PJ Hill got a carry and took it to the PSU 1 yard line. Wisconsin was finally ready to punch one in and --Oops, 12 men in the huddle.

The refs back the Badgers up to the five, but Evridge took it in anyway.

17-7

The last thing you want to happen as the half ends is for the home team to start building any momentum. The offense needed to come out and put something together and get some points to quell the turn-around.

Rosyter had two good runs on the next drive and it seemed like he was picking up 6 or 8 yards on every carry. Clark and Norwood got some rushing attempts that really went nowhere and it put the Lions in some passing situations.

We don't know anything about running a football team, but when it's 2nd and 8 and you have a guy like Royster breaking off 5+ yard runs left and right, why not try and shorten things up for third down?

Isn't it ironic that a couple PSU fans might be disappointed that, after all these years, Joepa tried some fancy plays when a run up the middle might have got the job done?

Anyway, two Clark passes fell incomplete and they had to punt the ball away.

A Wisconsin penalty on the return put the ball inside their own 10 yard line.

It was time to run the two minute drill and maybe swing the momentum even further their way, but Aaron Maybin (read: FIEND) was in the backfield before Evridge knew what was going on. He hit Evridge as he crossed the line of scrimmage and knocked the ball loose, right into the waiting hands of Josh Hull.

On his way to forcing that fumble, Maybin had a steak dinner, had sex with your girlfriend and saved four children from a burning building.

Drive ended. PSU ball.

PSU had to go for the jugular now.

Butler was interfered with on first down and the Lions were moved up to the two. Clark ran it in on the QB keeper.

Party on, Clark.

24-7

Wisconsin got the ball back with 1:24 left in the half.

A series on ineptitude followed, and it was on to the second half.

Yeah, the rout was back on.

-Halftime-

During halftime, Aaron Maybin put an end to the Taliban.

Threat neutralized.

3rd Quarter

Penn State received the ball to start the 3rd, and Daryll Clark promptly said, "Don't worry guys, I'll handle this."

Clark was 4-5 on the drive, hitting Williams, Norwood and Butler twice along the way. On the Wisconsin 4, Clark decided, "Fat Wisconsin linemen be damned, I'm plowing this one in."

And he did.

31-7

Wisconsin got the ball back and ran the the ball three times for nine yards and punted. We know, that play calling seems shocking what with Brett Bielema's extreme confidence in Evridge. At least for the Badgers, Williams made a fair catch on this punt.

The coaches seemed content with letting Clark control the game with his arm and again let him loose on the next drive. He really went to work, hitting Royster for 24, Norwood for 21, James McDonald (???) for 25 and finally Butler for a 44-yard touchdown.

Woot.

38-7

The Badgers came out lifeless, and Evridge tossed a pick to Lydell Sargeant on 3rd down, because he wasn't yet satisfied with Penn State's point total.

Clark hit Williams and Green twice on the following drive, which ultimately stalled at the Wisconsin 13. Kevin Kelly added to the beat down.

41-7

Much to the delight of Badger fans, Wisconsin started its next drive with a new QB, Dustin Sherer. And we can still hear the loud, sarcastic cheers after Sherer hit Garrett Graham with his first attempt for a 23-yard gain.

Get used to that headset, Allan.

After another completion and couple of rushes, the Badgers had the ball on the Penn State 27. Then, with all the composure of his predecessor, Sherer tossed an interception to Sargeant, who returned it 55 yards to the Wisconsin 44.

Or not.

Green had a carry for 8 yards, and the quarter was over.

Just a guess, but we think Jump Around probably wasn't much fun last night.

4th Quarter

Green had another carry for a first down to start the quarter, and then Clark hit him for a 19-yard pickup. Two plays later, Clark was intercepted.

The best thing about that interception was that it was a 34-7 game in the 4th Quarter, and Clark looked completely pissed off on the sidelines. That's a gamer.

The Badgers took over at their own 42. Sherer went back to work, and was 3-4 until he found another Lion defender with a pass, this time it was Mark Rubin.

Back up the truck. Under review.

Incompletion.

Not to worry though, because Sherer threw another incompletion to set up a fourth and 11, where he was promptly sacked for a loss of 12 by, you guessed it, Maybin.

The teams traded three-and-outs, and it was eventual transfer Pat Devlin's turn to take the reigns of the offense.

Devlin threw a couple completions on a drive that went for eight plays and 51 yards, and he sneaked one into the end zone to add the final blow to Wisconsin's nightmare conference start.

48-7

The Badgers got the ball back and moved it down the field, but nothing would come of it.

Shame in Madison.

Game.
48-7

3 Big Stat Lines

• Daryll Clark: 16-25, 244 yds, 1 TD (passing); 6 carries, 12 yds, 2 TD (rushing)
  
• Derrick Williams: 63-yard punt return for TD
  
• Aaron Maybin: 6 tackles, 3.5 TFL, 1 sack, 2 forced fumbles (!!!)
  

Our Quick Thoughts On The Game:

• RIP PJ Hill speaking in third person jokes. Until next year.
• Aaron Maybin is leading the nation in sacks. Did anyone see that coming?
• The PSU offense is good.
• We expected a win, but not by that much.
• Allan Evridge gives new meaning to the word "inept".
• The game was over after the Evridge fumble in the second quarter.
• The second half was a showcase for Penn State.
• Wisconsin: run, run, incomplete pass, punt.
  
• Williams returns another kick. Brad Childress belittled the Wisconsin punter after the game.
• Royster didn't have huge numbers, but he was still very solid.
• The defense as a whole played great.
• Bielema looked clueless. Not so easy when you're not using an inherited Alvarez squad.
  
• Call us trite if you want, but this was the definition of a statement game.

Penn State Player of the Game: Aaron Maybin
Re-watching the game barely through the first half we were thinking "damn, Aaron Maybin might just have to be the player of the game!" Well, there were still more than two minutes left in the first half at that point, and he still had a sack, forced fumble and tackle for loss left in him before the half closed. That forced fumble at the end of the 2nd essentially ended the game for the Badgers, and we have Maybin to thank for it. This guy is a beast and he's been great to watch.

Wisconsin Player of the Game: QB Dustin Sherer
If only because he had as many completions in his first two attempts as Evridge did all game.