UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Joe Paterno says he’s always been a fan of instant replay. In fact, he said that he clamored for it well before video replay was instituted just a few seasons ago.
Against Minnesota, the Nittany Lions benefitted from two video reviews, and both calls ultimately put the game out of reach.
Penn State (6-1, 2-1) had two catches initially ruled incomplete overturned late in the first half, including a 12-yard touchdown reception by Derek Moye, and dominated Minnesota (4-3, 2-2) 20-0 from a soggy, and sometimes snowy, Beaver Stadium Saturday afternoon.
“I’ve always been for instant replay,” Paterno said, later adding, “I think it’s a good system. Instant replay is good for everybody.”
It turned out to be pretty good for Penn State, but before the good fortune, the Nittany Lions’ offense was stuck in freeze-frame.
Oh, the Lions did move the ball. That wasn’t the problem. But it was the disappointing finishes to those drives that had Paterno a little upset.
“We were very sloppy offensively with all the penalties,” Paterno said. “Don’t even get me started.”
While Penn State rolled up 464 yards of total offense (177 rushing, 287 passing) and 21 first downs, the blue and white tallied nine penalties for 76 yards.
And through the first 28 minutes of action, Penn State only had two Collin Wagner field goals of 47 and 27 yards to show for their efforts. Wagner would later miss a 49-yard attempt, and pooch punted the ball on what would have been a 50-yard field goal attempt on PSU’s initial drive.
Then came the Lions’ drive late in the second quarter. Graham Zug went low to catch a pass from Daryll Clark, which would have given PSU a 1st-and-goal at the Golden Gopher seven yard line. The pass was initially ruled incomplete, but video review overturned the call.
Two plays later, Derek Moye made a fantastic effort to snare a 12-yard pass from Clark in the end zone, but that play was also ruled incomplete. Upon further review, however, the refs ruled a completed pass, and Beaver Stadium exploded as PSU extended its margin to 13-0.
Moye said he wasn’t sure if he had gotten his foot down, but was sure he had possession of the ball.
“I looked at him (the ref),” Moye, a former Rochester High School star, said. “I kind of gave him a little glare.”
The stare-down probably had little effect on the outcome of the review, but if Moye was engaged in a staring contest with the Gopher defense all game, Minnesota blinked several times.
In addition to the touchdown reception, Moye had five other catches for 108 yards. In all, he finished with six receptions for 120 yards on the day.
“We had high hopes for him,” Paterno said of Moye. “Each week, he gets better. He’s got the makings of a real good one.”
Moye’s teammate, wide receiver Graham Zug, a former Manheim Central star, offered his take on his personal vantage point of Moye’s touchdown…from the opposite side of the field.
“I saw he got the foot down,” Zug said.
Zug had a good game himself, hauling in five passes for 52 yards – the third time this season he’s caught five or more passes in a game and the first time since a 28-7 victory against Syracuse in the second week of the season.
Evan Royster ran for 137 yards on 23 carries. Clark threw for 287 yards and a score, and added a short touchdown run later in the game. Clark ran for eight yards on eight carries. Tight end Andrew Quarless added three catches for 35 yards for PSU.
Adam Weber threw for 101 yards and added 10 rushing, finishing with 111 of Minnesota’s 138 yards of total offense. Minnesota only ran 40 plays on the day to Penn State’s 75.
PSU travels to Ann Arbor next Saturday to take on Michigan.
NOTE: With the inclement weather and snow, none of the grass fields used for parking were open for fans to park in or tailgate on Saturday. Fans parked at one of nine different business parking lots in the State College business district and rode to the stadium on shuttle buses.
Paterno said he rode in to the stadium on a bus just like everybody else, then quipped, “The next time we get snow, I’m parking in Altoona. (Gonna) get into the commuter business.”
