When looking at historic performances in Penn State bowl games, the quarterback performances are not as eye-popping compared to other yardage records but still offer some memorable moments.
Penn State’s bowl success seems more often than not centered around its defense and rushing attack rather than a dynamic passing game. Just take a look at the Nittany Lions’ top bowl game rushing performances and you can see how Penn State typically relies on a strong running game. Only twice as a Penn State quarterback completed more than 30 passes speaking to the typically run-dominant offense.
A general rule of thumb is that a 300+ yard day as a quarterback is a pretty good day at the office. Penn State has only had two players ever accomplish that feat in a bowl game. There are a few bowl game outings, including the two 300-yard games, from former Nittany Lion signal callers that most Penn State fans will undoubtedly remember.
With [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] being touted as one of the most talented quarterbacks in recent Penn State history, perhaps a new top-10 performance is on deck in this year’s Peach Bowl.
A look at Penn State’s all-time 2,000-yard single-season passers and how the game is changing.
Penn State has a storied history when it comes to running the football, but the newer generation of football and the way the game is played is seeing the quarterbacks begin to have a larger impact on the field. And the stats certainly back that up.
Penn State doesn’t have a long list of passers who have eclipsed the 2,000-yard mark through the air the way some other schools have, but it is more and more expected that a Penn State quarterback will not only pass for 2,000 yards in a season, but go for over 3,000 yards in a single year.
Three quarterbacks in Penn State have history have multiple 2,000-yard seasons but [autotag]Trace McSorley[/autotag] is the only player in school history with multiple 3,000-yard seasons.
Sean Clifford is looking to catch and pass Trace McSorley for Penn State’s all-time touchdown passing record in 2022.
Penn State quarterback [autotag]Sean Clifford[/autotag] is approaching several records as he enters his final year of eligibility with the program. That includes the school’s all-time passing touchdown record currently held by Clifford’s predecessor [autotag]Trace McSorley[/autotag].
This year is a big year for Penn State football as a whole. James Franklin has a new contract and Sean Clifford is looking to leave a lasting impression. With a successful year under center, the team should be following along with him. The question is where would this leave his legacy?
Historically speaking, Penn State has never been a program that drives its offense through the air, but in recent years the program has been trending in the passing game. Here is an updated look at Penn State’s all-time passing touchdown leaderboard entering the 2022 season with Clifford 15 touchdown passes away from tying McSorley for the school’s career record.
Will Sean Clifford become Penn State’s all-time leading passer in 2022?
While Penn State has never been known for it’s quarterback play, the team’s history books appear like they are about to change.
Presently, [autotag]Trace McSorley[/autotag] is the all-time leading passer in program history. Hot on his heels though is present starter Sean Clifford. Clifford is returning for his fourth season as Penn State’s starting quarterback while some fans are eager to see what comes next at the position with Drew Alar on deck. But before that page if slipped, Clifford has a great chance to rewrite some Penn State passing reocrds.
If he can stay healthy, then the all-time passing record should be Clifford’s. Notably, though, there are some surprising names in the team’s all-time passing ranks. Names like Clifford and McSorley are obviously in there but also players like [autotag]Darryl Clark[/autotag], [autotag]Christian Hackenberg[/autotag], and program favorite [autotag]Matt McGloin[/autotag] also make appearances.
While none of them outside of Clifford are still competing, their careers never stray away from Penn State fans. Look now at the team’s top-10 all-time passing rankings entering 2022.
A look back at Penn State’s first appearance in the Outback Bowl, a muddy blowout of Auburn
Penn State’s first trip to the Outback Bowl was a fun one for the Nittany Lions. Penn State blew away Auburn in what was supposed to be a fairly even matchup between the Nittany Lions and Tigers. A season after going undefeated and winning the Rose Bowl, Penn State’s 43-14 victory over Auburn helped set the tone for what would turn out to be another promising 1996 season the following fall.
Penn State handled Auburn in less than ideal weather conditions on January 1, 1996. A combination of heavy rain and mud on the field made for a sloppy game, and Penn State capitalized on Auburn’s inability to adapt to the weather conditions with their explosive offense and steady defense. After the game, Penn State head coach Joe Paterno suggested his team just had more character to adapt to the playing conditions.
“You can’t let the weather bother you,” Paterno said after the win. “If you try to fight it, it’ll even be worse. It takes character to do that, and I think our kids showed a lot of character out there today.”
The 1996 Outback Bowl was the 17th bowl victory for Paterno. He had set the record for most bowl victories the previous season with Penn State’s Rose Bowl victory over Auburn, and he would go on to add seven more for 24 career bowl victories, the most in college football history. Alabama head coach Nick Saban enters the 2021-22 bowl season with 17 career bowl victories, for the sake of comparison.
Penn State wide receiver Bobby Engram took MVP honors in his final game with the Nittany Lions. Engram had 113 receiving yards with a pair of touchdowns. even he was surprised how much Penn State dominated the Tigers.
“On a day like today, a game like this is won in the trenches, and we did it on both sides of the ball,” Engram said after the game. “I couldn’t believe just how dominant we were.”
Penn State and Auburn played a tight first quarter with Penn State kicker Brett Conway scoring the only points of the first quarter with a short field goal. Auburn took a 7-3 lead early in the second quarter on a 25-yard touchdown pass from Patrick Nix (father of Bo Nix) to Robert Baker. Conway added two more field goals to take a 9-7 lead as Auburn’s defense hung tough for a while, but a late touchdown pass from Wally Richardson to Mike Archie just before halftime gave Penn State a 16-7 lead at the break.
And then Penn State ripped Auburn apart in the third quarter. Richardson completed a touchdown pass to Engram early in the third quarter. A few minutes later, Richardson completed his third touchdown pass of the game, this time to Stephen Pitts, from four yards out for a dominant 29-7 lead.
“That was the turning point,” former Auburn head coach Terry Bowden said of the late touchdown just before halftime. “And when Penn State took their first series in the second half in for a score, we were in a catchup situation that we couldn’t handle.”
Curtis Enis added a touchdown run from the one-yard line for a 36-7 lead as Penn State blasted Auburn 27-0 in the third quarter alone. Just one minute later, Richardson completed his second touchdown strike to Engram from 20-yards. Penn State completed a 40-0 run before Auburn managed to put any more points on the board in the fourth quarter.
The Penn State defense picked off two passes by Auburn’s Nix, who completed just five of 25 pass attempts before being pulled for the blowout. the defense also forced five fumbles and recovered two.
What quarterbacks at Penn State have thrown the most TD passes as Nittany Lions?
Penn State isn’t famous for throwing the football all over the field. The Nittany Lions have had their share of strong quarterbacks, just not ones that you think of when it comes to filling up the stat line game after game. However, there have been plenty who have found receivers in the end zone for six points on a number of occasions. Here’s a look at how the Penn State record book shapes up when it comes to quarterbacks throwing for six points.
Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford has a chance to be a top-three all-time passer at Penn State in 2021.
Penn State is hardly the first school you may think of when it comes to passing offenses, but the Nittany Lions have had some tremendous players at the wide receiver and quarterback positions over the years. And in more recent years, college football’s evolution to more of a passing game has started to rewrite the Penn State record book when it comes to all-time career passing leaders.
Entering the 2021 season, Sean Clifford is primed to easily make his way into the top 10 on Penn State’s all-time passing list, and he could move into the top three on Penn State’s all-time list, just behind the two quarterbacks who started before him.
Trace McSorley remains the school’s all-time leading passer, having the benefit of three years as a starter in an offensive system that was at the height of its game at the time.
Here is a look at Penn State’s top 20 all-time leading passers, including Clifford’s pursuit of moving up the board this fall.
