Penn State created opportunity to make up for blown call

Sometimes the college football gods are looking after you. Maybe Penn Stae didn’t need the assistance of a little divine intervention, but the Nittany Lions managed to create an opportunity to make up for a bad instant replay that went against them.

Late in the first half, West Virginia was rewarded with a first down on a 4th and 1. Instant replays appeared to show the defense actually stuffed West Virginia a yard shy of the first down markers, but the official ruling was the first down call on the field would stand. A few plays later, West Virginia kicked a field goal to cut Penn State’s lead to 13-6 with under a minute to play before halftime.

After initially looking like the Nittany Lions would simply run the clock with a handoff to Nick Singleton that went almost nowhere on the first play of the ensuing drive, Penn State hurried to the line and let Drew Allar take a shot deep down the field. Omari Evans , with the benefit of the refs not flagging him for a push-off of the defender, got his hands on the ball and gave Penn State an opportunity for a score just before halftime.

At worst, Penn State would be able to take a shot at a field goal just before halftime to get those three points back. But with 10 seconds remaining, enough time was available to take a shot to the end zone. And for the second time of the game, Allar connected with Harrison Wallace III for a touchdown. While Wallace’s first touchdown was highlighted by speed in the open field, his second touchdown was an impressive feat in the end zone.

So not only did Penn State erase the gift of three points for West Virginia moments earlier, but the Nittany Lions tacked on four additional points as a result. Give credit to offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki for creating this opportunity and potentially catching West Virginia napping a bit toward the end of the half.

Penn State is set to get the football to start the second half of the game, but a weather delay put the resumption of the contest on hold for an undetermined amount of time.

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