No. 12 Penn State beat Maryland 38-3 on a rainy senior day Saturday at Beaver Stadium.

Trace McSorley led the Nittany Lions to victory with three total touchdowns in his final home game.

How It Happened

Mike Miranda made his first career start at right guard and Connor McGovern shifted to center in Michal Menet’s absence. KJ Hamler and Miles Sanders combined for 69 yards on Penn State’s first two plays from scrimmage, then McSorley’s 3-yard touchdown run opened the scoring.

Maryland answered with a seven-play, 52-yard drive on its second offensive series that resulted in a 26-yard Joseph Petrino field goal. McSorley scored his 29th career rushing touchdown on a 20-yard burst up the middle. He’s currently tied with John Cappelletti, Richie Anderson, and Evan Royster for sixth place in program history.

McSorley’s interception with just under four minutes left in the first half was overturned, keeping Penn State’s drive alive deep in Maryland territory. The Nittany Lions took a 17-3 lead on Jake Pinegar’s 25-yard field goal. The freshman is now 15-of-21 on the season.

Maryland’s Tre Watson was ejected for targeting Sanders midway through the third quarter before freshman running back Ricky Slade scored from 8 yards out. Sanders finished with 14 carries for 128 yards and a fumble.

McSorley found Pat Freiermuth and Juwan Johnson for a pair of receptions following Petrino’s missed 31-yard field goal. Freiermuth hauled in his seventh touchdown of the season on a 5-yard pass with 12:24 left. Slade scored again on a 1-yard run after Tommy Stevens entered the game for McSorley.

Kevin Givens and Yetur Gross-Matos led Penn State’s defense with a combined 5.5 tackles for loss in the win. Cam Brown and Garrett Taylor also turned in strong performances for the Nittany Lions, who outgained Maryland 565-259 despite the poor weather conditions. Brown had five tackles (one sack) and Penn State’s lone forced fumble. 

“Trace McSorley is what you want in all of your players,” James Franklin said postgame. “You love him because he is the same guy every single day. The guy has not had a bad day in five years.”

Player of the Game

Trace McSorley | Quarterback

The Ashburn, Virginia, native tallied 294 total yards before Franklin honored him with an early exit that drew a huge roar from the *announced* crowd of 98,422.

What’s Next?

The Nittany Lions (9-3, 6-3 Big Ten) will prepare for their fifth straight bowl appearance. The selection show airs Sunday, December 2 at noon on ESPN.