Penn survives a scare to pull past Georgetown in overtime, 42-39

Cruising with a 16-point fourth-quarter lead, Penn had everything going for it against a Georgetown team that had just thrown two interceptions and lobbed a snap into their own end zone for a safety to close out the third quarter.

But the tides turned in the fourth when the Hoyas pulled off a miraculous comeback — complete with a clutch pair of two-point conversions and a 16-play, 86-yard drive to tie it with 1 minute, 22 seconds to go in regulation and force overtime.

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In overtime, Georgetown (3-3) managed a field goal, but Penn sealed the 42-39 win with a 6-yard touchdown run by freshman running back Malachi Hosley, who had three scores on the day in the best game of his young career.

“We talk about grit, resiliency all the time … you get knocked down and [keep] on coming up,” Penn coach Ray Priore said postgame. “To stay in it mentally for that long was really a bit of composure our kids showed.”

The victory — Penn’s third against Patriot League opponents this season serves as a crucial momentum swing for a team now heading into six straight conference matchups.

After a botched option fumble by junior quarterback Aidan Sayin led to a touchdown and a 7-0 lead for Georgetown in the second quarter, it appeared Penn (3-1) was on track to repeat the frustrating formula of its crushing overtime loss last week to Dartmouth.

But 17 straight Quaker points in a span of five minutes gave Penn some breathing room.

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Outside of the first-quarter fumble, Sayin had an efficient day, throwing for 254 yards and a touchdown through a notable number of short passes. Another Penn quarterback, sophomore Liam O’Brien, ran for the Quakers’ first score and then one more later in the third quarter.

O’Brien has seen occasional action as an option-prone signal caller this season, rushing for 53 yards and now three touchdowns through four games.

“Liam is a weapon,” Priore said. “It gives you versatility. Aidan has the ability to see the field and throw the ball — so does Liam — but part of what Liam does well is he’s got the ability to run it, the true [run-pass option].”

Despite Penn having a pair of interceptions off Georgetown senior quarterback Tyler Knoop twice in the third quarter, courtesy of senior defensive back Shiloh Means and sophomore linebacker John Lista, the Hoyas’ biggest gaffe came right between the interceptions.

Lined up on their own 1-yard line, and with rain pouring in, Georgetown’s center lobbed the ball well over Knoop’s head, which landed out of the back of the end zone to give the Quakers a safety.

Penn’s star senior cornerback Jaden Key went down with an injury, and looked immobile lying on the Franklin Field turf. The stadium was pin-drop silent for minutes on end, until the medical crew carted Key off the field, and the senior corner gave a relieving thumbs-up to the crowd on his way out.

With about five minutes left in the first half, Hosley had the play of the day, taking a pass to the flat 55 yards while evading Georgetown defenders at every turn.

Hosley had a similar moment last week against Dartmouth when, with roughly five minutes left in the first half, he caught a short pass from Sayin and sped his way to a 52-yard score for the first big play of his career.

“[Offensive coordinator] Coach [Dan] Swanstrom, he likes to utilize my speed, so I feel like that helps a lot in the passing game,” said Hosley. “So if I can get out, I know I can use my speed as my advantage.”

In the second half against Georgetown, Hosley also chipped in another touchdown, this time off a 20-yard carry up the middle that required him to bounce off a Hoya defender and leave another two on the ground. And of course, Hosley had the game-winner in overtime.

On the day, the freshman finished with 53 receiving yards and a team-high 48 rushing yards.

As Sayin said after last week’s game, “Malachi’s got some juice.” Don’t be surprised to see Hosley become an even more weaponized back for Penn in the coming weeks.

Penn will look to keep this momentum against Columbia (2-2) next Saturday (1:30 p.m., ESPN+). Two weeks ago, the Lions had a Georgetown beatdown of their own, blanking the Hoyas, 30-0.

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