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Penn State extends lead against Memphis in third quarter thanks to defensive pressure, pick-six

Kevin Cunningham

By Kevin Cunningham

Published:

Offense, offense, offense. That’s all the 2019 Cotton Bowl has given us between Penn State and Memphis. At some point, one of the teams’ defenses had to make a massive play, right?

Well, it finally did late in the third quarter.

RELATED: PSU is breaking all-time Cotton Bowl records thanks to unstoppable first half

Penn State owned a 38-36 lead with one minute left before the fourth quarter began and Memphis was looking ready to gain the lead with its offense on the field. That was until Nittany Lions stud linebacker Micah Parsons made a play on the Memphis quarterback.

Once Parsons got to him, the QB threw the ball in the air that was undoubtedly affected by the LB. Then, Penn State defensive back Garrett Taylor sought the ball out in the air and returned it for a 15-yard touchdown:

Penn State needed its defense to make a play, and this was it. Early in the fourth quarter, Memphis responded with its sixth field goal of the day, cutting the lead to six (45-39).

The game is being televised on ESPN.

Kevin Cunningham

Kevin covers Big Ten football for Saturday Tradition.