Penn State picks up its second Big Ten win of the season in a narrow result against Washington

SEATTLE — Husky Stadium looked beautiful on Saturday afternoon, with Mount Rainier visible among the fall foliage and Lake Washington full of “sailgaters” ahead of Penn State’s first trip to Seattle since 1921.

But the sea of purple in attendance went home disappointed, as the Nittany Lions celebrated a 28-25 road win over Washington despite not scoring a point in the second half.

The Huskies tried to mount a comeback, scoring 19 points in the second half after trailing 28-6 at halftime, but Penn State (5-4, 2-4 Big Ten) held on to stay undefeated against Washington, now needing just one win to reach bowl eligibility.

“I think days like today, being this far away from home and having such a great crowd being there, and to watch our football team keep going forward the way we believe this program needs to go forward, those are real positives for us,” said head coach Matt Campbell, postgame.

Everything clicked for Penn State in the first half. The Nittany Lions scored four touchdowns in five possessions with a mix of strong runs and good passing from quarterback Rocco Becht. Additionally, Penn State’s defense had Washington completely out of rhythm, while quarterback Demond Williams Jr. struggled.

Penn State was so content with its 28-6 halftime lead that it took all three first-half timeouts into the break despite having the ball with 50 seconds left.

The second half looked like a completely different game. The Huskies scored 11 points in the third quarter and pulled within three after Williams found wide receiver Dezmen Roebuck wide open in the end zone. Washington also converted a pair of two-point conversions.

“There were some things I really didn’t like in the second half,” Campbell said. “I’ll be honest with you.”

But Penn State put together a crucial scoring drive with about 7 minutes left in the fourth quarter, helped by a targeting call against the Huskies. Running back Carson Hansen ran 36 yards to get the Nittany Lions in Washington territory, and while they didn’t reach the end zone, they earned a first down to ice the game.

“To be able to end it on our terms when everything was going against us, and have the poise and some betterness about ourselves to reset ourselves and win the moment, that was awesome to see,” Campbell said.

Penn State missed Chase Sowell dearly in the passing game last week, with Rocco Becht throwing for just 175 yards without him. With Sowell back in the lineup, the passing game was humming.

“That guy just was going out there and making plays, doing what he does, and to put that guy on an island like that is crazy to me,” Becht said. “So for him to go out there and just make those plays, it was incredible, and it was awesome to have him back.”

Sowell had a 45-yard touchdown in the second quarter to put the Nittany Lions up 21-3 and ended as Penn State’s leading receiver with four catches for 125 yards. He also had an unreal one-handed catch for 36 yards in the third quarter.

The fifth-year wide receiver has over 90 yards in each of his last three games and has 635 yards this year. Sowell’s looking more and more like a player an NFL team would take in the early rounds of the upcoming draft.

Becht, meanwhile, had another inconsistent performance, with a stellar first half and a worse second half. He had 193 yards and two touchdowns by halftime, but had just 47 yards and zero scores afterwards while also taking two sacks.

Penn State did get a bit more passive with its playcalling after the break considering the comfortable lead, although it didn’t lead to much success for Becht or the offense.

Prior to kickoff, NFL Hall of Fame linebacker and former Nittany Lion great Jack Ham had a medical emergency and was taken to the University of Washington Medical Center.

Shortly after, Penn State released the following statement: “Penn State Sports Network analyst Jack Ham experienced a medical emergency earlier today and was transported to the University of Washington Medical Center, where he is being treated. We do not have further information at this time.”

Campbell confirmed postgame that Ham was in “stable condition” and gave credit to Penn State Sports Network play-by-play announcer Steve Jones for a “heroic effort,” saying “if it’s not for Steve, you know, and what he did, I don’t know if we would have as good a news as we do right now.”

He also thanked Washington and its athletic director Pat Chun and the Huskies’ staff for helping Ham.

“It was awesome to be able to go win the football game for him and his family, and we’re really our thoughts and prayers will continue to be with him on a full recovery,” Campbell said.

Ham has been an analyst for Penn State Sports Network since 2000.

Penn State returns home to face Minnesota. Time is TBD, but will be either a 7 p.m., or 7:30 p.m. kick. Additionally, the network has not been announced the time of this report. The Nittany Lions last faced the Golden Gophers in 2024, escaping with a 26-25 lead on the road.