Indiana Falls To Penn State On The Road

Saturday, October 10

University Park, Pa.

Noon

Indiana University

4-2 , 0-2

Penn State

5-1 , 2-0

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Indiana

Penn State

10/10/2015 3:34:00 PM | Football

Box Score

By: Sam Beishuizen, IUHoosiers.com

By: Sam Beishuizen | Twitter
IUHoosiers.com

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Indiana's offense was unable to generate momentum beyond a first-quarter touchdown in a 29-7 loss at Penn State on Saturday, dropping its second consecutive game.

Playing without senior starting quarterback Nate Sudfeld or junior running back Jordan Howard, IU's depth was tested in the loss. Midway through the third quarter, sophomore backup quarterback Zander Diamont, who started in place of Sudfeld, was forced to exit the game with an injury.

Redshirt freshman Danny Cameron took over in Diamont's absence. Playing for the first time in his career, Cameron completed 6-of-16 passes for 65 yards. His only mistake was an interception in the second half.

Head coach Kevin Wilson said Indiana has got to find a way to score points, even without Sudfeld and Howard, and that the defense needs to play better than it did against Penn State if the Hoosiers expect to win Big Ten games.

"My deal is, our team's got to keep fighting," Wilson said. "I thought we were a bit more selfish in our performance. We're a better team than we showed today. We played a good opponent, great credit to Penn State."

After exchanging two punts each, Penn State delivered the first punch with 7:35 remaining in the first quarter. Quarterback Christian Hackenberg found receiver Brandon Polk for a 39-yard score to put the Nittany Lions ahead 7-0.

Indiana (4-2, 0-2) responded 3:24 later to even the score. Diamont completed back-to-back passes to redshirt sophomore receiver Isaac Griffith for 31 yards to help the Hoosiers reach the Penn State red zone. Once in scoring position, Diamont kept the ball for a 12-yard touchdown run to tie the game.

On the ensuing kickoff following Diamont's score, Indiana recovered an on-side kick at midfield. The Hoosiers were unable to capitalize on the field position, going three-and-out before punting.

Penn State (5-1, 2-0) scored what proved to be the game-winning touchdown with 5:40 remaining in the first half on another 39-yard touchdown pass from Hackenberg, this time to wide receiver DaeSean Hamilton. Penn State kicker Joey Julius missed the extra point try after the touchdown, but it proved to be relatively unimportant.

The Nittany Lions closed the first half with a 62-yard drive capped off by a 1-yard touchdown run by Hackenberg. He added a second rushing score in the second half from 5-yards out in the fourth quarter to account for Penn State's first six points of a 10-point second half.

Hackenberg finished with four total scores, two on the ground and two through the air. He completed 21-of-39 passes for 262 yards. Diamont and Cameron combined to complete 15-of-33 passes for 155 yards. Diamont added 38 yards rushing on 11 carries to lead the Indiana ground attack. Sophomore Devine Redding finished with 32 yards on 13 carries.

"I just think the offense has to step up," redshirt junior receiver Ricky Jones said. "The defense, I think, is playing pretty well. It looks pretty bad by stats but if you actually watch the game, the offense let them off the hook a lot of times without scoring, four-and-outs, different thinks like that."

Indiana fifth-year senior bandit Zack Shaw and senior defensive end Nick Mangieri did the most damage defensively, each registering two sacks.

Beishuizen: Mangieri Stays Hot Against Penn State

Even with key injuries, Wilson said his team is better than they played against Penn State. He already began talking about the need to play better next weekend when the Hoosiers return home to play Rutgers.

"Our football team's got to play better," Wilson said. "There's a lot of football to play. We expect to have a great week. It's going to be a great challenge. Looking forward to Homecoming. (We'll) see if we can move forward and get one next week."