Penn State Win Really a Rout

Don’t be deceived by the final score: No. 2 Penn State’s 23-10 victory over No. 18 Ohio State on Saturday at State College, Pa., was a rout, plain and simple.

Had the Nittany Lions not stubbed their toes nearly every time they moved inside the Buckeye 25-yard line, who knows how large the winning margin would have been?

“We should have put 40 on the board,” fullback Mike Cerimele said after catching a six-yard touchdown pass from Kevin Thompson on the game’s opening possession. “We had two field goals blocked, we stopped ourselves inside their 25 all day.”

Penn State, 7-0 overall and 3-0 in the Big Ten, wasn’t about to be caught by Ohio State (4-3, 1-2), which managed only 11 first downs and 143 total yards while the Nittany Lions were rolling up 422, including 306 on the ground.

Eric McCoo slipped tackles from the start and finished with a career-best 211 yards in 22 carries, including runs of 53, 43, 24 and 22 yards. He also caught four passes for another 47 yards as the Nittany Lions won their ninth straight game--the second-longest winning streak among major schools behind Marshall’s 10 in a row.

The Nittany Lions also gave Joe Paterno career win No. 314, tying him for third place with Amos Alonzo Stagg for most victories among major college coaches. Bear Bryant has 323, and Pop Warner 319.

Paterno, in his 34th season, was more concerned with mistakes than history. The Lions were penalized 10 times for 85 yards and Kevin Thompson fumbled in the end zone to hand the Buckeyes their only touchdown.

But the Lions’ best defensive effort of the season made sure Ohio State and quarterback Steve Bellisari couldn’t take advantage. Bellisari ran for his life as the Beaver Stadium crowd of 97,007 roared in approval. The left-hander was sacked eight times--2 1/2 credited to linebacker LaVar Arrington--and was seven of 21 for 78 yards and one interception.

No. 17 Wisconsin 59, Indiana 0--Ron Dayne rushed for 167 of Wisconsin’s school-record 705 yards of offense as the Badgers steamrolled the Hoosiers at Madison, Wis.

Dayne, who had only 17 carries and sat out the entire second half, became the fourth player in Division I history to record four 1,000-yard-plus rushing seasons.

He ran for two touchdowns, including a 57-yard run late in the second quarter that gave Wisconsin (5-2, 3-1) a 38-0 halftime lead.

The Hoosiers (3-4, 2-2) allowed 461 rushing yards and 31 first downs to Wisconsin.

Minnesota 37, Illinois 7--Thomas Hamner rushed for 184 yards and one touchdown and quarterback Billy Cockerham added another 100 yards rushing as the Gophers defeated the Illini at Champaign, Ill.

Illinois (3-3, 0-3) lost its third game in a row and its sixth straight homecoming game before a crowd that started to leave in the third quarter after it started to rain and the game appeared decided.

Minnesota (5-1, 2-1) scored on three straight possessions within eight minutes in the first half--separated only by three Illinois three-and-outs--to go up 17-0 early in the second quarter.

Northwestern 23, Iowa 21--Quarterback Zak Kustok scored on a keeper on fourth and two with four seconds left to give the Wildcats (3-4, 1-3) the victory over the Hawkeyes (1-5, 0-3) at Evanston, Ill.

Northwestern led, 16-0, at halftime but trailed, 21-16, with 2:37 left to play. A nine-yard run by Damien Anderson set up the winning touchdown.