Penn State football closes regular season with 35-16 win over Michigan State on Senior Day

Penn State led wire to wire Saturday evening against Michigan State in its Senior Day game, closing out the regular season with a 35-16 win to get to 10-2 on the year.

The Nittany Lions had a shot to get a field goal to open the game’s scoring, but kicker Jake Pinegar missed a 37-yard field goal after the defense recovered a fumble to give the offense a short field.

They were still able to get on the board first when Sean Clifford hit a wide open Theo Johnson for a touchdown to make it a 7-0 game.

Penn State’s offense kept the momentum going with a trick play for its second touchdown. Wide receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith caught a backward pass from Clifford, then threw it to Johnson for an easy score to make it 14-0.

Michigan State was able to get on the board with a last-second field goal before the end of the first half to make it a 14-3 game.

The second half didn’t get much better than the first for the Spartans. They fumbled a punt that paid near immediate dividends for the Nittany Lions. Tyler Warren recovered the fumble, then caught a touchdown pass from Clifford shortly thereafter to give Penn State a 21-3 lead.

Michigan State earned its first touchdown of the game 10-play, 75-yard drive that lasted just over four minutes. Quarterback Payton Thorne hit Maliq Carr in the endzone for the score, with Carr out-jumping Penn State linebacker Kobe King to haul it in, making it a 21-10 game.

Thorne was able to make it even closer early in the fourth quarter with a rushing touchdown that cut it to a 21-16 game.

Despite that, Penn State scored more than enough as the Nittany Lions finished up the game for the 35-16 win over the Spartans.

Player of the game

Penn State running back Nick Singleton: Penn State’s running game had a clear advantage from the start of the game, and both freshmen were able to get positive yardage whenever they wanted against the Spartans. It was Singleton, however, who looked a little bit more impressive in this one. He had 10 carries for 75 yards in the first half alone to go with a catch for 16 yards in the game’s first 30 minutes. He was as explosive as ever in the game, turning potential negative rushes into positive ones for the Nittany Lions Saturday evening.

What the win means

Penn State has reached double digit victories for the first time since 2019 in a season that had potential to go awry. Yes, the Nittany Lions lost to Ohio State and Michigan this season, but there’s a reason both of those teams entered the day ranked in the top five in the country. They managed to take care of business against the teams they were clearly better than and that has to count for something. This game may not affect much, but it gives the team some momentum heading into the bowl game, wherever it may be.