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Ohio State delivers game-saving defensive stand late in win over Penn State

Cory Nightingale

By Cory Nightingale

Published:

Ohio State did it to Penn State — again.

Once again, the Buckeyes came into Happy Valley and spoiled the afternoon for a record-breaking crowd at Beaver Stadium, surviving at the finish line with what turned out to be a game-saving defensive stand with the Nittany Lions having 1st-and-goal at the Ohio State 3-yard line.

The Buckeyes defense stiffened though, as it did often on Saturday, forcing Penn State quarterback Drew Allar to throw an incomplete pass on 4th-and-goal at the Ohio State 1-yard line with 5:13 left in the game.

The 4th-ranked Buckeyes took the ball and simply ran the clock out, not letting the 3rd-ranked Nittany Lions get another crack at a tying score, as Ohio State held on for a titanic 20-13 victory that kept it firmly in the discussion for a College Football Playoff spot.

Penn State is still in that Playoff discussion, too, of course, but now the Nittany Lions’ margin for error got a lot thinner after Saturday’s loss. Penn State took an early 10-0 lead but couldn’t do much else, even when it had prime scoring opportunities, like the drive late in the 4th quarter and like late in the 1st half when the Nittany Lions also had 1st-and-goal but failed to score when Allar was intercepted with 11 seconds left in the half.

Ohio State has now won 8 straight meetings in this series.

Cory Nightingale