Penn State’s trip to Northwestern turned into another rough night for a team that still hasn’t found its footing in Big Ten play. After last week’s fourth-quarter collapse against Wisconsin, the Nittany Lions were handled again on Friday, falling 34-13 as Northwestern celebrated the opening of New Ryan Field.
The loss dropped Penn State to 3-2 overall and 0-2 in conference play, and it marked the first losing streak under new head coach Matt Campbell.
What went wrong showed up everywhere, but the biggest problem was impossible to miss: Northwestern ran the ball at will. The Wildcats piled up 413 rushing yards, the most against Penn State since Michigan ran for 418 on Oct.
15, 2022. Caleb Komolafe and Joseph Himon II were the engines, with Komolafe finishing at 188 yards and Himon adding 162.
They became the first pair to each top 100 rushing yards against the Nittany Lions since Donovan Edwards and Blake Corum did it for Michigan in that 41-17 win in 2022.
Penn State’s interior defensive line had no answer. The Wildcats kept hammering the middle, and Himon’s second-quarter touchdown was the clearest snapshot of the night: he burst straight up the center, bounced toward the sideline to slip tackles, and went 38 yards untouched into the end zone.
Northwestern didn’t need to throw much to control the game. Aidan Chiles attempted just 14 passes, and all four touchdowns Penn State surrendered came on the ground. The Wildcats also had 12 runs of at least 10 yards and five of 20 yards or more.
That was a dramatic shift from the first four games, when Penn State was allowing only 113.2 rushing yards per contest. After the Northwestern loss, that number has climbed to 173.2 per game.
Rocco Becht, billed before the season as the most experienced quarterback in college football, never settled in either. He finished 26 of 41 for 243 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions, and the offense spent too much of the night fighting uphill.
There was a chance for Becht and Penn State to swing momentum in the third quarter. On third-and-10 from Northwestern’s 43, Zay Robinson got loose with plenty of room to run, but Becht sailed the throw over him. Instead of a touchdown, the Nittany Lions had to punt while still trailing 24-7.
The third-down numbers told the same story. Becht went 4-for-9 for 25 yards on those downs, and only two completions moved the chains. He also took a sack early in the second quarter that killed another drive.
Against power-conference opponents this season, Becht has completed 54.3 percent of his passes for 357 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. For a fifth-year quarterback, he still looks like he’s adjusting to Big Ten defenses.
Penn State’s decision-making on the sideline didn’t help. Campbell had emphasized during the week that he coached to not “screw it up” against Wisconsin, and that cautious approach showed up again in Evanston.
The Nittany Lions punted on fourth-and-5 from Northwestern’s 44 on their opening drive. After the Wildcats answered with a touchdown, Penn State again chose the safe route and punted on fourth-and-2 from its own 44.
Later, with the game slipping away, Penn State still punted on fourth-and-10 from Northwestern’s 43 in the second half. The Wildcats got hit with fair-catch interference on the return, but the result was still just 22 yards of field position for Penn State.
Then came the clearest sign of all. After scoring a touchdown with 7:53 left in the fourth quarter to cut the deficit to 31-13, Penn State did not try an onside kick. With Northwestern running the ball so effectively, that choice made a comeback essentially out of reach.
Penn State might have lost anyway with a more aggressive approach. But the repeated conservatism suggested Campbell hasn’t changed much since the Wisconsin collapse.
The Nittany Lions now turn to USC for the annual White Out at Beaver Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET Saturday on NBC Sports.
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