Penn State starts strong, holds on to beat Washington
SEATTLE (AP) — Penn State’s offense may not have scored in the second half, but it did do something more valuable when it mattered most.
After a Washington touchdown turned what had been a 22-point halftime advantage into a three-point lead, the Nittany Lions held onto the ball for the final 7:40 of game time, seeing out a 28-25 win with a 14-play, 70-yard drive.
“That’s how you want to end games, just like that,” quarterback Rocco Becht said. “… That last drive was awesome.”
Becht went 16-for-27 for 240 yards and threw first-half touchdowns to Chase Sowell and Zay Robinson, both of whom were listed as questionable on the pregame injury report but ended up being good to play. But his biggest play of the night may well have been a 2-yard sneak on fourth-and-1 to the UW 1-yard on the first play after the two-minute timeout, which allowed the Nittany Lions (5-4, 2-4 Big Ten) to kneel the rest of the clock out.
“That guy gives you poise,” head coach Matt Campbell said. “That’s why that guy is really special. When it matters the most, that guy always gives you a chance to win the game. He has all year, and he did it again today.”
Becht’s sneak gave Penn State its fourth first down of the critical drive against a UW defense that had shut the Nittany Lions out for five straight drives after allowing four touchdowns on their first five.
Three plays before, the Huskies gifted Penn State a first down on third-and-5 when they were flagged for having 12 players on the field.
“We didn’t get the communication right,” UW head coach Jedd Fisch said. “… Very disappointing.”
Sowell, who missed last week’s win over Purdue with an undisclosed injury, finished with four catches for 125 yards, including a 45-yard scoring strike up the seam that made it 21-3 with 10:03 left in the first half.
Robinson — who had also been listed as questionable on the pregame injury report — caught a 24-yard touchdown pass on third-and-10 three plays into the second quarter for the Nittany Lions, who were still without Koby Howard for the sixth straight game.
Carson Hansen ran for 119 on 14 carries, scoring a 12-yard touchdown in the first quarter and adding a key 36-yard run to keep Penn State’s final drive going.
Demond Williams Jr., who was renamed UW’s starting quarterback after leading the Huskies’ late comeback at Nebraska last weekend, started his day 2-for-10 and went into halftime with just 36 passing yards. The Huskies flipped the switch in the second half, with Williams finishing with 172 yards and touchdowns to Baron Naone and Dezmen Roebuck — along with a pair of passes for two-point conversions — but the Nittany Lions’ best defense proved to be their offense when it mattered most.
The takeaway
Penn State: The Nittany Lions have won back-to-back Big Ten contests after starting their conference season 0-4. They averaged 18.5 points per game in the four losses, but have scored 59 in their past two games.
Washington: The Huskies have now lost three consecutive home games for the first time since 2021.
Up next
Penn State: Hosts Minnesota on Nov. 14
Washington: Visits Michigan State on Nov. 14