Penn State football’s 2019 season had its ups and downs, but there was no lack of spectacular moments throughout the year.

Headlined by a brand-new starting quarterback in Sean Clifford, a crew of talented young running backs, and several returning stars on defense, James Franklin’s squad certainly made some memorable plays thoughout this season.

As the Nittany Lions prepare for their Cotton Bowl Classic match against Memphis on Saturday, here’s our list of Penn State’s top 10 plays of 2019.

10. Sean Clifford and Pat Freiermuth’s connection vs. Michigan State

After two consecutive losses to the Spartans, Penn State had plenty of demons to exorcise in East Lansing. This beautiful lob pass from Sean Clifford landed perfectly in the big tight end’s arms for an early score, setting the tone in the Nittany Lions’ 28-7 victory over the Spartans.

The dictionary definition of "touch pass" pic.twitter.com/G9lGVB7CNV

— Onward State (@OnwardState) October 26, 2019

This grab was one of seven touchdowns for Freiermuth throughout the regular season.

9. Micah Parsons’ forced fumble vs. Ohio State

While this game did end as a Penn State loss, Parsons’ forced turnover was one of three that helped keep the Nittany Lions alive. This play led to a Will Levis touchdown that shrunk Ohio State’s second half lead to just 21-14, and eventually 21-17 on the next possession.

Penn State football knows a thing or two about game-changing fumbles in Columbus pic.twitter.com/fAOkSjGwOh

— Onward State (@OnwardState) November 23, 2019

8. KJ Hamler breaks the entire state of Maryland’s ankles

Every Nittany Lion had fun in Penn State’s 59-0 shellacking of Maryland, but this play was definitely the highlight of the night.

KJ Hamler's hesi on his touchdown was straight disrespectful pic.twitter.com/IOvRkOWcMw

— Onward State (@OnwardState) September 28, 2019

After leaving the entirety of the Terps’ secondary in the dust, Hamler’s disrespectful hesi and juke against the last man to beat was just rude. While it was definitely one of the best plays from the wide receiver’s season, this score was also a top play of the 2019 season as a whole.

7. KJ Hamler goes airborne vs. Iowa

Hamler finds himself on this list once again with this absurd score. The wide receiver took off from the four-yard line, cleared Iowa’s defensive back, and helped to give Penn State a 7-3 lead over the Hawkeyes.

KJ does what KJ does, folks.

6. John Reid’s pick six vs. Buffalo

While this play may have been lost in the shuffle of the absurd Penn State scoring run that followed, John Reid’s pick six against Buffalo should be considered one of the top defensive plays from Penn State’s season.

Pick Six! @PennStateFball brings Beaver Stadium to life with a timely turnover: pic.twitter.com/ooNYGKHnXJ

— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) September 8, 2019

The Nittany Lions were down 10-7 to Buffalo in the second half before Reid made this play and had struggled to muster up any form of offense. James Franklin’s squad outscored Buffalo 31-3 after the interception.

5. Noah Cain ices the Hawkeyes

In Penn State’s hardest road test of the season at the time, Noah Cain stepped up bigtime. The freshman running back recorded this score to put Penn State up two possessions late in the game, and he finished his night with 102 yards of rushing on 22 attempts.

Noah Cain: MY starting running back pic.twitter.com/ueIyLKLoIN

— Onward State (@OnwardState) October 13, 2019

4. Penn State’s goal line stand vs. Pitt

While this isn’t one singular play, it was one of the most important sequence’s of the first half of Penn State’s season. After a long drive by Pitt, the Nittany Lion defense finally bared down and kept the Panthers from the end zone.

After three big stops, Franklin’s old friend Pat Narduzzi elected to kick a field goal, which Pitt kicker Alex Kessman proceeded to smash off the left goalpost. Yikes.

3. KJ Hamler earns the final first down vs. Michigan

This certainly isn’t the flashiest of the wide receiver’s plays from this season, but Hamler’s four-yard pick up was enough to finish the Wolverines under White Out conditions at Beaver Stadium.

The wide receiver already had six grabs worth 108 yards and two scores on the night, but he showed he could make plays the hard way on this one, as he lowered his shoulder and found a way to get a first down for the Nittany Lions.

2. Lamont Wade’s ‘pass breakup’ vs. Michigan

A slow-mo look at this play may show that this was more of a drop than a Lamont Wade pass breakup, but we think the safety’s pressure helped force this crucial incompletion on 4th & goal.

Three words: Goal. Line. Stand. pic.twitter.com/MW66bQCDeW

— Onward State (@OnwardState) October 20, 2019

The goal-line stand occurred right in front of Penn State’s student section, and Beaver Stadium erupted once the ball popped out of the wide receiver’s hands. The play allowed for Nittany Lion offense to take over and end the game on its own terms.

1. ‘Mo Bamba’ gets the best of Michigan

This White Out moment occurred before any goal line stands or game-clinching first downs. In fact, this took place on the first play from scrimmage, as Jim Harbaugh and Co. were forced to take a timeout due to the excessive noise caused by Music Man PJ Mullen’s song choice of ‘Mo Bamba.’

The absolute BEST student section in America! Your IMPACT is amazing! Thank you! #WeAre#LiveMásStudentSectionContest@NittanyvillePSU pic.twitter.com/jVBVy4eSow

— James Franklin (@coachjfranklin) December 13, 2019

This play set the tone for the rest of the night without a doubt. The Nittany Lions jumped out to a 21-0 lead early, and despite a Michigan comeback effort, came away from the White Out with a massive victory and a 7-0 record to boot.