Report card: Nittany Lions survive injuries, scare

It wasn’t until Penn State caught a big break when defensive lineman Austin Johnson scooped a fumble and rumbled 71 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter that the Lions finally broke away from San Diego State.

Their 37-21 victory can be viewed a couple different ways. The first, obviously, is Penn State regularly overcomes its own sloppy play and keeps finding ways to win. The other way to look at Saturday’s third straight victory for the Lions is just as valid.

Once again, Penn State let a second-rate opponent stay very much in the game until the fourth quarter, raising alarm that the Lions are about to get buried by their Big Ten schedule. That’s a concern for a couple of weeks, since Penn State hosts Army this coming Saturday.

Unless, of course, Penn State struggles in that game, too.

Once Saquon Barkley went out with injury, the offense stalled. When Akeel Lynch went down also, Penn State’s ball movement pretty much stopped. Grade: C

OFFENSIVE LINE: Christian Hackenberg suffered his two sacks in three weeks and,Barkley had to break tackles to find running room. Grade: C-

QUARTERBACK: Hackenberg had his hands full, but did manage to throw for 277 yards and three touchdowns. Grade: B

RUNNING BACKS: Penn State better pray Barkley’s injury isn’t serious, because he was the only one going forward on the ground. Grade: C

WIDE RECEIVERS: Saeed Blacknall had a nice 46-yard grab and tight end Kyle Carter finally got involved in the gameplan with three catches. Grade: B-

Johnson’s big fumble return saved the Lions from what well could have been an embarrassing loss and overall, the Lions D allowed just one sustained touchdown drive. Grade: B+

DEFENSIVE LINE:

Johnson saved the day, changing the game with his 71-yard fumble return when the Aztecs were driving for the potential go-ahead score and Anthony Zettel had a team-high seven tackles and recovered a key fumble while mourning the loss of his father. Grade: B+

LINEBACKERS:

Another solid game from Troy Reeder and Brandon Bell, who combined for eight tackles. Grade: B-

SECONDARY:

Some solid coverage at times disrupted San Diego State’s timing, but this wasn’t exactly a high-powered passing offense they were facing. Grade: C+

SPECIAL TEAMS

The Lions allowed a 100-yard kickoff return for one San Diego State touchdown and muffed a punt that led to another Aztecs score. Penn State did, however, recovered a fumbled San Diego State punt that set up a touchdown for a 20-14 Penn State lead. Grade: C-

COACHING STAFF

Not a lot of imagination after running backs Barkley and Lynch left for the day, but Nick Scott’s running back option pass to Chris Godwin was pretty neat and went for 27 yards. Grade: C-

Penn State running back Mark Allen (8) dives into the end zone past San Diego State linebacker Calvin Munson (54) for a touchdown during the first half of an NCAA college football game in State College, Pa., Saturday, Sept. 26, 2015.

State running back Mark Allen (8) dives into the end zone past San Diego State linebacker Calvin Munson (54) for a touchdown during the first half of an NCAA college football game in State College, Pa., Saturday, Sept. 26, 2015. Gene J. Puskar | AP photo

Reach Paul Sokoloski at 570-991-6392 or on Twitter