Ohio Bobcats vs Penn State Nittany Lions Match Player Stats On Sep 01, 2012

SportsDirect Inc. staff
Sep 1, 2012

Ohio 24, Penn State 14: Tyler Tettleton completed 31-of-41 passes for 324 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for another score as Ohio spoiled the debut of Bill O’Brien at Penn State.

Beau Blankenship rushed for 109 yards and caught seven passes for 72 yards for the Bobcats, who exploded in the second half offensively and forced three turnovers on defense in the upset.

O’Brien became the first coach besides Joe Paterno to start a season in charge of Nittany Lions in over four decades but could not coax his team into the end zone in the second half. Quarterback Matt McGloin passed for 178 yards and a pair of touchdowns before the break but managed only 82 yards in the second.

Penn State fumbled twice in the first half but still carried a 14-3 lead into the break, benefitting from a blocked punt late that set up the second touchdown.

Ohio scored its first touchdown on a broken play early in the third, when Tettleton bobbled the snap and threw it up for grabs in the middle of the field. The ball was tipped into the hands of Landon Smith, who raced into the end zone for a 43-yard score to cut the deficit to 14-10.

The Bobcats took the lead just under seven minutes later. Tettleton capped a 70-yard drive by diving over the pile for a 1-yard rushing score, giving Ohio a 17-14 edge with 3:49 left in the third quarter.

Bobcats kicker Matt Weller, who was the special teams Player of the Year in the Mid-American Conference last season, missed a pair of field goals in the second half that would have extended the lead.

But Tettleton made sure the missed opportunities would not haunt the team, guiding Ohio on 14-play, 93-yard drive capped by a perfect fade pass into the back corner of the end zone to Donte Foster. The 5-yard pass play made it a 24-14 gap with 2:55 left to play.

The Nittany Lions had another chance for a desperation drive, but McGloin was intercepted on a tipped ball with just under two minutes left.

GAME NOTEBOOK: McGloin finished with 260 yards on 27-for-48 passing and a pair of touchdowns with one interception. … The Nittany Lions, who are down to 65 scholarship players due to NCAA sanctions, had their lack of depth become an issue when All-Big Ten linebacker Gerald Hodges went down with a right leg injury and CB Stephen Morris was carted off with an ankle injury. Left tackle Donovan Smith and running back Bill Belton were also banged up. … Ohio had lost the previous five meetings between the schools, though they had not matched up since 1974. … Smith finished as the Bobcats' leading receiver, hauling in three catches for 82 yards and a score.