Penn State Holds Off Football, 20-14

Saturday, October 3

University Park, Pa.

12 PM ET

Army West Point

1-4

Penn State

4-1 , 1-0

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Army West Point

Penn State

Penn State Holds Off Football, 20-14

October 03, 2015 | Football

Box Score

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Quarterback A.J. Schurr ran for two touchdowns, but three turnovers slowed the Army offense in a 20-14 loss to Penn State on Saturday afternoon at Beaver Stadium.

Schurr totaled 74 yards on the ground, John Trainor ran for 69 and Matt Giachinta gained 54. Drue Harris had 35 yards and Aaron Kemper added 25 as the Black Knights ran for 261 yards. Army (1-4) outgained Penn State 293 to 264, but the Nittany Lions scored 10 points off turnovers.

On defense, Andrew King and Jeremy Timpf each made eight tackles. King, Brandon Jackson and Eddy Ruzga each recorded a sack, and Jackson added seven tackles of his own.

Penn State's Christian Hackenberg threw for 156 yards, including a 33-yard touchdown pass to Mike Gesicki. Nick Scott led the Nittany Lions (4-1) in rushing with 54 yards on 12 carries and a touchdown.

The Army defense forced a three-and-out on Penn State's opening possession when King sacked Hackenberg on third down. Army took over on its own 42-yard line, but a fumbled snap gave the ball back to the Nittany Lions.

Penn State moved the chains with a run by Scott, then converted a fourth-and-4 when Hackenberg found DaeSean Hamilton to his left for a 12-yard pickup. The Nittany Lions scored on the next play when Scott ran 11 yards for a touchdown. Joey Julius' capped the short drive with a successful extra point as PSU led 7-0.

A personal foul penalty stalled Army's drive and Alex Tardieu was forced to punt from the end zone and Penn State started its drive at the Army 48-yard line. Three consecutive runs by Johnathan Thomas gave the home team a first down, before King stopped him behind the line of scrimmage for a loss of three. An incompletion plus a holding penalty made it third-and-23 and Penn State was eventually forced to punt. Army began its next drive at the 27-yard line after a 12-yard boot.

The teams traded punts and Army began at its own 30-yard line. The Black Knights picked up consecutive first downs on carries of nine and 11 yards, respectively, before Jordan Asberry was unable to handle Schurr's pitch and Penn State recovered the fumble at its own 43.

Brandon Polk took a handoff 14 yards on first down to move Penn State into Army territory, but the drive stalled when Kenneth Brinson stopped Mark Allen for a loss of two yards on third-and-4 at the Army 37. Penn State punted and Army's next possession started at the eight-yard line with 6:36 to play in the first half. Trainor started the drive with a nine-yard burst and two plays later he took a pitch around the left side for a 22-yard pickup. Schurr was stopped after a short gain, but then he fumbled on the next play and Penn State had the ball at the Army 41.

A 19-yard scramble on third-and-15 by Hackenberg prolonged the drive, before Julius kicked a 37-yard field goal to send Penn State into halftime with a 10-0 lead.

Penn State added to its lead after forcing Army into a three-and-out on its first series of the second half. The Nittany Lions started at the Army 29-yard line after DeAndre Thompkins' 25-yard punt return. Allen's first-down pickup of 12 yards moved Penn State into the red zone, but Army's defense held firm on third-and-short with a stop by Ruzga before Julius kicked a 27-yard field goal to make it 13-0.

Two carries by Trainor moved the ball out toward midfield before a keeper by Schurr made it second-and-3 at the Penn State 44. Schurr's 32-yard play-action pass to Edgar Poe down the seam sent the Black Knights into the red zone for the first time. Three plays later, facing a third-and-short from the three, Schurr fought his way across the goal line and Army cut the deficit to 13-7 after Daniel Grochowski's extra point.

Army's defense continued to play well and forced another three-and-out on the ensuing Penn State possession. A 14-yard return by Poe gave Army the ball at its own 35, trailing by six with 4:03 on the third-quarter clock.

A handoff up the gut to Giachinta gained 20 yards on first down, but a 15-yard penalty on the Black Knights made it first-and-25. Giachinta got the ball again and gained 16 yards, but the drive was halted there and Tardieu pinned Penn State inside their 10-yard line.

Hackenberg took a shot down the field on second down and short and connected with Chris Godwin for 49 yards. The next play resulted in a 33-yard touchdown strike from Hackenberg to Gesicki down the left sideline. Penn State led 20-7 at the start of the fourth quarter.

Needing an answer, Army responded with a touchdown drive of its own. The Black Knights picked up two first downs before Schurr broke off a 56-yard run to bring Army back within six.

The defense forced Penn State into a third-and-16 when Brandon Jackson sacked Hackenberg, but a screen pass to Scott gained 22 yards and a first down. Ruzga sacked Hackenberg on the next play and Penn State ended up punting the ball back to Army.

Trailing by six, Army started at its own 15-yard line with 6:48 to play. Schurr gained eight before Giachinta powered ahead for a first down. The Black Knights picked up another first down on third-and-1 when Schurr was tackled across the 38-yard line. The next play was a 14-yard gain by Kemper up the middle into PSU territory. After Schurr recovered his own fumble, Drue Harris gained five yards on second down and was stacked up on third down. Facing a fourth-and-5 with less than two minutes left at the Penn State 43, Schurr was sacked by Jason Cabinda and the Nittany Lions took over on downs. They picked up a first down and ran out the clock for the six-point win.

Army returns home on Oct. 10 to host Duke at Michie Stadium. Kickoff for the contest is set for noon and it can be seen live on CBS Sports Network.