Following a week of turmoil off the field, the No. 12 Penn State University Nittany Lions tried to ignore the drama against the No. 17 Nebraska Cornhuskers. But came up short, losing 17-14.
The week started with the arrest of former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky, followed by charges of perjury against the athletic director and university vice president. Coach Joe Paterno was fired on Tuesday Nov. 8 and Tom Bradley was named interim head coach. This was the first time that Joe Paterno was not on Penn State’s coaching staff since 1950.
The players from Penn State took the field at home for the last time this season on Saturday, following Senior Day presentations and a prayer for the victims of the scandal.
The game started off with a scoreless first quarter until Nebraska hit a 41 yard field goal a minute into the second quarter. The field goal was followed up with a touchdown right before the half to put the Cornhuskers up 10-0 going into the break.
Nebraska running back Rex Burkhead rushed for a 14 yard touchdown in the third quarter to put Nebraska up by 17 points, but Penn State mounted a comeback. The Nittany Lions' running back Stephfon Green scored two touchdowns to keep Penn State in the game 17-14, but Penn State was stopped twice by the Nebraska defense in the final five minutes.
Burkhead led Nebraska with 25 carries for 121 yards and one touchdown, while quarterback Taylor Martinez threw 13 completions on 26 attempts for 143 yards and carried the ball 19 times for 56 yards.
Penn State quarterback Matthew McGloin completed 16 out of 34 passes for 193 yards. Green carried the ball 17 times for 71 yards and both of the Penn State touchdowns.
Both teams played clean games, with only one turnover made by each team. Penn State had three penalties for 32 yards and Nebraska had six for 45 yards. Penn State had a slight edge in time of possession, holding the ball 30:57 to Nebraska’s 29:03.
Overall, it was a good game of football following an ugly week off the field. Although there were fears of violence, the fans were out in good sport, many holding signs in memory of the victims. Although Penn State did not win, the crowd still applauded for the team after the game and chanted, "We are Penn State!" as the team left the field.
Penn State's next game is against Ohio State on Nov. 19 at 3:30 p.m. (ET) and Nebraska's next game is against Michigan on Nov. 19 at 12 p.m. (ET).
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