Kent State University
Penn State
No. 11 Penn State Hosts Flashes Saturday
9/11/2018 2:36:00 PM | Football
Game Notes Golden Flashes Radio
For the second time in three weeks, Kent State will get a crack at its first program win against the Big Ten, when it visits No. 11 Penn State Saturday at noon. The Golden Flashes are coming off their largest margin of victory since 2004 with a dominant 54-14 win against Howard. Kent State hit the 50-point milestone for the first time since 2008 and surpassed 500 yards of offense for the first time in five years, giving Sean Lewis his first career win.
Facts In A Flash
• The Flashes rushed for 355 yards against the Bison, their biggest output since 2012.
• KSU also scored six rushing touchdowns for the first time in a decade.
• Junior Justin Rankin had a career-high 147 rushing yards and scored his 10th career touchdown.
• In his first FBS game, junior Jo-el Shaw rushed for 105 yards and three touchdowns against Howard, including a 15-yard TD on his first carry.
• Kent State is averaging 82.5 plays and their 84 snaps at Illinois were the most in 35 games.
• Senior linebacker Matt Bahr made 11 tackles (8 solo) against Howard and forced a key fumble.
• At Illinois, senior All-MAC First Team inside linebacker Jim Jones led the defense with 11 tackles, a sack and a fumble recovery. He led the Flashes with 98 tackles and 6.0 sacks last season.
• Sophomore Woody Barrett put up unprecedented numbers (387 yards total offense) for a KSU quarterback in a season opener at Illinois. He has thrown for 3 TDs and rushed for 2 in two games.
• Penn State will be Kent State's third Top 20 opponent since last season (Clemson, Louisville).
• Junior safety Jamal Parker made his fifth career interception against Howard. Parker made 10 tackles at Illinois (8 solo). He finished fourth in the MAC in passes defended last year.
• Kent State returned 11 players who have earned Academic All-MAC honors in their career and two MAC Distinguished Scholar Athletes.
All-Time Series
Penn State leads the all-time series with Kent State 5-0 with three victories since 2010. Most recently, in the 2016 season opener, the Nittany Lions closed the game with 20 unanswered points in a 33-13 victory. Justin Rankin rushed for 82 yards and caught two passes in his debut, while Juantez McRae made eight tackles.
TV/Video/Radio
Saturday's game game can be seen on FS1 with Tim Brando (play-by-play), Spencer Tillman (analyst) and Holly Sonders (sideline). The game can be heard live on 640 WHLO and the free Golden Flashes Radio channel on iHeartRadio with a one-hour pregame show. Ty Linder will handle the play-by-play duties and is joined by 10th-year color analyst Rob Polinsky. Jacob Pavilack will be on the sideline. By 2017, iHeartRadio reached over 100 million registered users.
Previewing Penn State
• In two games, No. 11 Penn State is averaging 48.0 points and 208.0 rushing yards per contest.
• The Nittany Lions rank 13th in the nation in both kick return average (31.2) and punt return average (22.3).
• Penn State has won its last six games dating back to November, including a Fiesta Bowl victory over Washington.
• The Nittany Lions have won their last 15 home games, including an overtime victory over Appalachian State to open the season.
• Penn State has scored on all 10 of its trips to the redzone with nine touchdowns.
• Opponents have not scored off of a Penn State turnover in two games.
Key Players To Watch
• Senior quarterback Trace McSorley has completed 34 passes for 374 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. McSorley also leads the team with three rushing touchdowns. He set Penn State single-season records for passing yards (3,614) and touchdowns (29) in 2016.
• Junior Miles Sanders leads Penn State with 209 rushing yards. He's rushed for two touchdowns and has caught four passes.
• Senior DeAndre Thompkins has a 39-yard punt return for a touchdown.
• Redshirt freshman receiver KJ Hamler has caught two touchdown passes and had a 52-yard kickoff return.
• Senior cornerback Amani Oruwariye has two interceptions, a forced fumble and 10 solo tackles. He was an All-Big Ten Second Team selection last season.
• Junior defensive end Shareef Miller leads the team with 3.0 tackles for loss. He claimed All-Big Ten Third Team honors last season.
Ground Leaders
After two games, Kent State leads the Mid-American Conference in both rushing yards per game (269.0) and rushing touchdowns (7).
Looking Like a Veteran
In his first career FBS start, Woody Barrett completed 28 passes for 270 yards and two touchdowns, while rushing for 117 yards and one touchdown at Illinois. During one stretch, Barrett completed 28-of-34 passes.
Spending his first year redshirting at Auburn, Barrett played at Copiah-Lincoln Community College last season, before winning the quarterback job at the end of preseason camp.
Barrett ranked 11th in the nation in total offense (387.0) following week 1 and ninth in the nation in completions per game (28.0). His 117 rushing yards were the second most in the MAC.
