It took a while to get it, but Matt Campbell has his first Big Ten win as head coach of Penn State. Penn State ended its losing skid with a 31-17 win at home against Purdue in Week 9, and the hope is that this sets the tone for a strong finish to the regular season. Penn State's bye week may have come at a good time as the Nittany Lions came out with a competent approach to running the football and a defensive game plan ready to take control of an opposing offense with some rising stars in the Big Ten. It may not have been the best game Penn State could have asked for, but it was more than good enough given the current circumstances.
And who doesn't love a win on Halloween?
Here is a look at the postgame report card for the Nittany Lions against
Purdue.
Quarterback: B
Rocco Becht went into the bye week feeling some heat for his performances in Penn State's losing streak. He did not have a stellar game against Purdue, with a handful of passes still seemingly off the mark and succumbing under pressure in a few spots. But he was solid enough to help Penn State secure a win in Week 9. Becht passed for just 175 yards with a touchdown while completing 16-of-24 passes. Becht did not throw an interception or lose a fumble, and he even added 27 net rushing yards with a touchdown.
Running Backs: A
Penn State's running game has not been much to write home about this season, but that was far from the case this weekend. Cam Wallace had a career-high 135 rushing yards and Carson Hansen added another 96 yards as the running back combo helped overpower the Purdue defense and wear them down all game long. Each running back had a run of 40+ yards, but most of the yardage came in shorter bursts that would grind out first downs and methodically move the chains.
Receivers and Tight Ends: B
Without its top two receivers available this week, Penn State relied heavily on the tight ends early in the game. And early on, it was effective with Andrew Rappleyea and Benjamin Brahmer each having an impact and leading the Penn State receiving game. Rocco Becht connected with his reliable tight end options with 4 receptions each, and Rappleyea scored a touchdown in the first quarter. Gabe Burkle also got involved early with a catch.
Attempts to stretch the field did not go well with Brett Eskildsen unable to get much of a clean opportunity when Becht tried going downfield with his trusted receiver. Eskildsen had 1 catch for 17 yards.
Defense: A
Penn State's defense was in total control all game long. Outside of one busted play in the first quarter that resulted in a Purdue touchdown, the defense shut down the Boilermakers and their talented offensive stars in a way no team has this season. The 175 yards given up by the defense were the fewest offensive yards accumulated by the Boilermakers in a game this season. Penn State also picked off Ryan Browne twice in the game, although the second interception should have been knocked down as Purdue was in a 4th-and-30 from just outside their own end zone.
Special Teams: D
This was not a strong day for any part of the Penn State special teams unit. Ryan Barker hit a 44-yard field goal but missed from 55 yards and 42 yards on his other two attempts. We won't knock Barker for missing from 55 yards, and a miss from 42 yards happens. But that wasn't even the bad with the special teams. Penn State had a punt blocked and returned for a Purdue touchdown to tie the game in the second quarter, and Nathan Tiyce's other punt traveled just 32 yards in the second half.
On top of that, Zay Robinson made a couple of questionable decisions to call for and field a fair catch inside his own 10-yard line, when the more conventional line of thinking is typically to let the football go with hopes of it traveling into the end zone. But maybe his fair catches saved Penn State a few yards, as Purdue did seem to have some solid punt coverage in action. Robinson had just 11 punt return yards on his one return attempt.
One bright spot was kicker Lucas Tenbrock's six kickoffs all resulting in touchbacks. Penn State also successfully executed a fake field goal on the first offensive series of the day that set things up for a touchdown in the first quarter. That helps keep Penn State from having a failing grade for the special teams unit this week.
Coaching: B+
Matt Campbell will come away from this game feeling good about a number of things with his team, from his offense's running game and the overall performance of the defense. Taylor Mouser had a good offensive game plan ready to roll despite missing two top wide receivers, and the plan to get the tight ends involved early worked well before handing the keys to the running game for the majority of the second half. Defensive coordinator D'Anton Lynn had his defense ready for Purdue's offensive playmakers and made life challenging all game long for the Boilermakers.
Overall: B+
There was not a lot to complain about following Penn State's long-awaited first Big Ten win of the season. It was not a picture-perfect win by the Nittany Lions, but just snapping a four-game losing streak coming out of a bye week was exactly what this team needed after a rough month of football.
Up next for Penn State
After closing out the month of October with a win, Penn State will be on the road next week in hopes of starting off November with a win. Penn State makes its longest road trip of the season when it heads to the West Coast to face Washington. At this time, a start time for the Nov. 7 game has not been confirmed.
This article originally appeared on Nittany Lions Wire: Penn State postgame report card: Grading Nittany Lions vs. Purdue
