By Ralph D. Russo, Audrey Snyder and Scott Dochterman STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — No.
4 Ohio State escaped No. 3 Penn State with a 20-13 win Saturday after a crucial goal-line stand in the fourth quarter helped send the Nittany Lions to their first loss. Trailing by seven, Penn State drove to the goal line thanks to a pair of big plays by tight end Tyler Warren .
But Kaytron Allen was stuffed on three consecutive runs up the middle, and Ohio State denied a pass intended for tight end Khalil Dinkins on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line. The Buckeyes grinded out the rest of the clock thanks to steady running by Quinshon Judkins and two key third-down conversion runs by quarterback Will Howard , a Kansas State transfer and Pennsylvania native who grew up a Penn State fan but spoke before the game about not being recruited by the Nittany Lions. Advertisement Penn State quarterback Drew Allar started after exiting last week’s game at Wisconsin with an injury, but the Nittany Lions (7-1, 4-1 Big Ten) didn’t score an offensive touchdown against the Buckeyes (7-1, 4-1).
Their only touchdown came on a 31-yard pick six by cornerback Zion Tracy off of Howard on the Buckeyes’ first possession, which gave Penn State an early 10-0 lead. Howard responded by leading Ohio State to a pair of touchdowns on its next two possessions, and the Buckeyes never trailed the rest of the way in front of a Beaver Stadium record crowd of 111,030. Ohio State continues to use Penn State as a pressure-rel.