Sep 6, 2008 7:00 pm US/Eastern
Penn State Crushes Oregon State, 45-14
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) ―
No. 19 Penn State shoved aside the distractions and Oregon State.
Evan Royster rushed for
141 yards and three touchdowns, Daryll Clark threw two TD passes and the
Nittany Lions defense didn't miss a beat without two suspended starters in a
45-14 win Saturday over the Beavers.
What was supposed to be
Penn State's toughest nonconference game of
the year turned into a laugher early.
Oregon State
fell to 0-2 for the first time since 2004.
Clark
looked poised in the pocket in his second career start, finishing 14-of-23
passing for 215 yards, while also running for a 18-yard score. Jordan Norwood
finished with a career-high 116 receiving yards on eight catches.
Royster had 112 yards
and all three of his touchdowns with 11-plus minutes left in the second
quarter, benefiting from a dominating performance by the Nittany Lions'
offensive line.
Mickey Shuler tiptoed
the sideline in the end zone for an acrobatic 5-yard touchdown catch to give Penn State
(2-0) a 14-0 lead before the Beavers sputtered on their next drive.
Josh Gaines tackled
tailback Ryan McCants for no gain, before fellow defensive end Aaron Maybin
leveled the Beavers' Lyle Moevao just as the quarterback released the ball to
force Oregon State to punt from their own 37.
That didn't go well either.
The snap to punter Johnny
Hekker was wide. Out of rhythm, Hekker tried to run but was immediately tackled
by Penn State's Nate Stupar for a 9-yard loss.
Two plays later,
Royster went off tackle for an easy 28-yard touchdown run to give Penn State a
21-0 lead with 14:41 left in the second quarter.
Three-plus minutes
later, Royster got terrific lead blocks from receiver Brett Brackett and
fullback Dan Lawlor to score easily from 4 yards out on a sweep for a 28-0
lead.
By that time, the
biggest concern for the giddy student section was whether they could twirl
their white rally towels in the air in unison while cheering "We are ... Penn State!"
They were headed for the exits by early in the fourth quarter, with the Nittany
Lions up by 38.
It was Joe Paterno's
374th career victory, temporarily putting him one ahead of Florida State's Bobby Bowden for most wins among
major college coaches. The Seminoles were to play Western Carolina later Saturday.
Regardless, Saturday's
win had to make Paterno feel good about his defense after the Hall of Fame
coach didn't play pass-rushing end Maurice Evans or fellow starting defensive
lineman Abe Koroma because of an unspecified off-field issue.
Oregon State
had a few highlights, including Jacquizz Rodgers' 12-yard scoring run late in
the second quarter, when the freshman broke three tackles up the middle and
tumbled into the end zone. Rodgers added
a fourth-quarter TD run and finished with 99 yards on 22 carries.
But that was about it for the
Beavers in rowdy Beaver Stadium.
They were outgained 454-342 --
and many of those Oregon
State yards came with the
game well out of hand.
Moevao finished
25-of-41 passing for 250 yards and two interceptions.
(© 2008 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
