Two years ago, Penn State made the trip west to Evanston for the first time since 2017, and the game couldn’t have started any better for Northwestern.
A fumble recovery on the opening kickoff allowed then-interim coach David Braun’s squad to get on the board first. But as their No. 6 ranked opponent regained its composure, the home team stumbled again and again, failing to respond or find its footing the rest of the way.
Already up 21 with just over two minutes to go, the Nittany Lions opened — and closed — their final drive by subbing in their backup quarterback, calling a play-action shot play and uncorking a pass 30 yards for a garbage-time touchdown.
For the NU-faithful, it felt like another sign of disrespect from now-former Penn State coach James Franklin and his squad, who told the media before the game that he purposefully turned off the team’s music in practice to prepare for a “quiet” crowd at Ryan Field.
Flash forward 742 days and Braun’s group were the ones silencing a more than 108,000-person home crowd, reversing the fate of days past with a triumphant 22-21 victory Saturday in a game they entered as three-touchdown underdogs. After more than 11 years with the Nittany Lion reins in his hands, Franklin was promptly relieved of his coaching duties after the loss.
With a date to homecoming in Happy Valley, Braun and the Wildcat (4-2, 2-1 Big Ten) brass understood that adversity was the price of admission to try to beat a team like Penn State, with first-hand experience of how quickly the game could get out of hand if their team didn’t answer the call.
He and the team came into the hostile environment prepared, and it showed as they were able to bounce back time and time again in a gutsy win.
A blocked punt to conclude the offense’s first possession was the first of many times NU was forced to deal with a bad hand Saturday, as the Nittany Lions (3-3, 0-3 Big Ten) set up just 31 yards away from a 7-0 lead on their first drive. Facing a battle-tested ’Cats’ defense, that lead never came.
Graduate student defensive back Ore Adeyi stepped in front of a throw five yards deep in the endzone for the first interception of his career, and the offense was able to carry that momentum into a 12-play scoring drive.
“(I attribute our response to) our leadership, our maturity,” Braun told reporters postgame. “Truly a unified team and group that just trusts one another.”
Penn State countered with a dozen-play scoring drive of its own, grabbing a 7-3 lead early in the second quarter, and the ’Cats once again found themselves in a hole.
To that point, NU hadn’t played in a game this season with a lead change beyond each team’s opening possession. In fact, Braun and his team hadn’t won a game where they trailed after the first quarter since the end of the 2023 season.
But in its biggest game this season, NU rose to the occasion once again.
“There wasn’t anyone on that sideline that, when we went down, didn’t believe that our offense was going to put together a drive and go take the lead back,” Braun said.
The ’Cats’ offense, unphased, responded with its most decisive drive on the day — 75 yards in just eight plays, all of which went for positive yards, capped by a 29-yard touchdown strike to junior wide receiver Griffin Wilde to retake the lead.
On the following drive, the pattern continued. Sophomore wide receiver Drew Wagner muffed a punt, allowing the Nittany Lions’ offense to restart its drive just outside the redzone and eventually re-establish its four-point advantage.
For NU, the swing was the difference between having the opportunity to go up ten before the break and possibly getting the ball back next already down two possessions if the ’Cats failed to score in the final 79 seconds of the half.
With some help from 30 yards of Penn State penalties, graduate student quarterback Preston Stone led the way as NU successfully converted the two-minute opportunity before halftime with a short field goal.
Although the team trailed 14-13, the ’Cats had dealt with their, at times self-imposed, adversity admirably, allowing just seven points on the two short drives gifted to the Nittany Lions by their own miscues and tacking on points of their own afterwards to minimize the damage each time.
Unlike Penn State, NU was effective by not breaking its own rhythm at all. The team hadn’t been penalized on the day, and although Stone took a sack in the redzone, the offensive line hadn’t allowed another tackle for loss in the run game.
The team’s head coach, though, entered the break frustrated by a unit getting in its own way too often.
“I came in at halftime and was hot,” Braun said postgame. “I felt like we left so many opportunities out there in the first half.”
The ’Cats had limited their small, drive-altering setbacks, but were leaving the door open for the Nittany Lions with game-altering blunders. With perseverance, and a few mistakes by Penn State in the second half, NU closed out its upset win.
Throughout the game, the ’Cats were given three opportunities to retake the lead following a Penn State score. NU scored all three times, not allowing the Nittany Lions to extend a lead or get on the board twice in a row for the first time this season.
By Braun’s own admission, the ’Cats played a far-from clean game.
Gaffes on special teams like allowing a block and muffing a punt allowed the Penn State offense to hang in the game and take the lead multiple times on a night it struggled to maintain its rhythm. NU’s final tally of 282 yards on offense was the lowest in a win during Braun’s tenure even though the team ran 68 plays from scrimmage.
“What a great opportunity for us as a coaching staff and a football team to get back and watch the film objectively and not sugarcoat the fact that there’s still areas that we need to get fixed and improve and learn from today,” Braun said after the game.
But the ’Cats found a way to step up when it mattered most.
“I truly believe that our football team expected to win today,” Braun said to open his post-game press conference. “It showed up in the adverse situations that showed up during the game — our response and resilience.”
Email: [email protected]
X: @aboyko_nu
Related Stories:
— Rapid Recap: Northwestern 22, Penn State 21
— Boyko: Northwestern football’s offensive line protects the prize
— Football: Short-handed linebackers prepare for dangerous Penn State backfield
