Penn State Nittany Lions vs Wisconsin Badgers Match Player Stats On Dec 03, 2016

The Sports Xchange
Dec 4, 2016

INDIANAPOLIS -- Trace McSorley threw a Big Ten championship game-record four touchdown passes Saturday night and No. 7 Penn State rallied from a 21-point deficit to defeat No. 6 Wisconsin 38-31 in Lucas Oil Stadium.

McSorley's 18-yard touchdown pass to Saquon Barkley with 13:41 remaining gave the Nittany Lions (11-2) a 35-31 lead -- their first of the game -- and Tyler Davis added a 24-yard field goal with 5:14 to play, extending the lead to 38-31.

Wisconsin (10-3) drove from its 25-yard line to the Penn State 24, but Badgers running back Corey Clement was stopped just short of the line to gain on fourth-and-1 with 1:01 to go and Penn State exhausted the remaining time.

McSorley's 70-yard touchdown pass to Saeed Blacknall with 10:58 to play in the third quarter pulled Penn State within 28-21. Barkley's 1-yard touchdown run with 4:22 left in the third quarter tied it at 28-28.

Wisconsin took a brief 31-28 lead on Andrew Endicott's 23-yard field goal with 16 seconds left in the third quarter, but Penn State scored the game's final 10 points to win its first Big Ten title game.

The Badgers built a 28-14 halftime lead, scoring in a variety of ways, including linebacker Ryan Connelly's 12-yard fumble return after a bad snap from center from Penn State's shotgun formation. That touchdown, with 9:42 remaining in the second quarter, increased the Badgers' lead to 21-7.

On the next series, Penn State failed on a fourth-down play from its 42-yard line, setting up yet another Wisconsin touchdown.

The Badgers drove 42 yards in five plays, taking a 21-point lead on Dare Ogumbowale's 7-yard touchdown run with 5:15 remaining in the first half.

Wisconsin opened the scoring with 5:27 left in the first quarter on Austin Ramesh's 1-yard run, capping a 14-play, 81-yard drive that included Bart Houston's 24-yard pass to Jazz Peavy to the Penn State 3-yard line.

Clement ran 67 yards for a touchdown with 3:06 to go in the first quarter, pushing Wisconsin to a 14-0 lead.

Penn State pulled within 14-7 with 1:10 remaining in the first quarter on McSorley's 33-yard touchdown pass to Mike Gesicki. The Nittany Lions drove 75 yards in five plays for that score.

With 58 seconds left in the second quarter, McSorley threw a 40-yard touchdown pass to Blacknall, capping an eight-play, 90-yard drive.

NOTES: Wisconsin RB Corey Clement rushed 10 times for 98 yards during the first quarter. ... Penn State twice failed on fourth-down attempts in the second quarter. ... Wisconsin entered the Big Ten title game with a six-game winning streak, compiling a 19.3-point average margin in those six victories. ... Penn State came in with an eight-game winning streak, compiling a 22.7-point average margin in those victories. ... In the first half, Wisconsin ran 36 plays for 230 yards and Penn State had 35 plays for 212 yards.