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STATE COLLEGE – Miles Sanders is known for making bold statements with his legs, but not with his mouth.
So, when Sanders proclaimed several days ago that Penn State would run the football effectively against Wisconsin, it was out of character but not out of line.
Sanders carried 23 times for 159 yards and one touchdown and topped 1,000 yards for the season, leading the No. 21 Nittany Lions past the Badgers 22-10 Saturday at wind-swept Beaver Stadium.
“I saw the confidence in the O-line,” Sanders said, explaining his optimism. “Everybody saw that today. They played their best today, knowing that we struggled for a couple weeks. We just had a confidence coming into this game.”
Penn State (4-3 Big Ten, 7-3) rebounded from a 42-7 shellacking last week at Michigan with a ball-control offense and a pressure defense that held Wisconsin (4-3, 6-4) to 12 first downs.
“We wanted to make a big statement,” said defensive end Shareef Miller. “They kept talking about their offensive line the whole week. We understand they’re a great offensive line and we were ready for the test.”
Miller and defensive tackle Robert Windsor each had two sacks and end Yetur Gross-Matos had one for the Lions, who forced four turnovers. They held the Badgers to 190 total yards after Jonathan Taylor, the nation’s leading rusher, burst through the middle for a 71-yard touchdown run on their first series.
Taylor finished with 185 yards on 20 carries.
“That’s what got me going honestly, to see him (Taylor) ballin’,” Sanders said. “I like competing.”
Sophomore quarterback Jack Coan, filling in for the injured Alex Hornibrook, completed just 9-of-20 passes for 60 yards. Amani Oruwariye and Nick Scott had interceptions for Penn State.
“We ended up not being able to do really anything throwing the ball,” Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst said.
Trace McSorley completed 19-of-25 passes for 160 yards and one touchdown to DeAndre Thompkins for the Lions without throwing many deep balls.
“Wisconsin’s a great defense,” McSorley said. “They pride themselves on being physical. We wanted to prove that we could be a physical offense as well against a team like that. Our offensive line was doing a good job of getting movement off the ball.
“Miles did a great job of making guys miss. We were efficient running the ball. We were able to get positive yards on first and second down.”
With the score 7-7, Coan fumbled a snap that was recovered by Gross-Matos at the Penn State 48. That set up Jake Pinegar’s first of three field goals and gave Penn State the lead for good.
“Those are frustrating to everyone,” Chryst said. “It just makes it that much harder to win.”
After Miller’s first sack stopped Wisconsin in the second quarter, the Lions turned around and drove 60 yards for another touchdown. Sanders picked up 23 yards on a third-and-7, McSorley found tight end Pat Freiermuth for 14 yards and Sanders leaped into the end zone from the 1.
“I don’t think Miles gets enough credit for the balance he has,” McSorley said. “He’s able to take a hit, shake it off and keep going. I don’t think he gets enough credit for his lower body strength.
“He’s fast and elusive, but I don’t think (people realize) how much lower leg drive that he has. He finishes forward on guys.”
Wisconsin trimmed it to 16-10 at halftime on Rafael Gagliaone’s 28-yard field goal, but the Badgers did not score in the second half when they gained just five first downs.
“They (Penn State’s defensive linemen) were challenged by the coaching staff to be the dominant line up front,” Oruwariye said. “We didn’t want to be talking about their line. We wanted to be talking about ours. They stepped up to the challenge.”
So did Sanders, who became the 16th back in Penn State history to rush for 1,000 yards in a season after the Lions were held to 68 and 118 rushing yards the last two weeks.
He gained 9 yards behind right guard Connor McGovern and right tackle Ryan Bates on a fourth-and-1 in the fourth quarter and then picked up 12 to reach the milestone and set up Pinegar’s third field goal, which made it 22-10.
“I’ve worked really hard the last two years,” Sanders said. “It (reaching 1,000) is something I feel really good about, thanks to the O-line. It starts with them. I’m happier for them than I am for me. They dominated the whole game.”
Contact Rich Scarcella: 610-371-5070 or [email protected].
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