Nebraska Finds That Penn State, Paterno Are Back, 40-7

After consecutive losing seasons, Joe Paterno and Penn State are back in a big way.

Larry Johnson and Michael Robinson had two touchdown runs apiece and Rich Gardner turned the first interception of his career into a touchdown as the Nittany Lions routed No. 8-ranked Nebraska, 40-7, Saturday night at State College, Pa.

Paterno, who has more major college wins than any other coach, got No. 329 in front of a record crowd of 110,753. It was the Nittany Lions’ first victory over a top-10 team since Sept. 18, 1999, when they beat eighth-ranked Miami, 27-23.

Penn State had two lean seasons after that, going 5-6 and then 5-7--Paterno’s first consecutive losing records in his long career. But with this one victory, the Nittany Lions showed their 75-year-old coach how much they have improved.

“I think this puts us right back on the map and opened a lot of eyes,� said Bryant Johnson, who had eight receptions for 147 yards.

Penn State (2-0) dominated the third quarter, eating away 7:10 before Robinson’s eight-yard touchdown run gave the Nittany Lions a 19-7 lead. Quarterback Zack Mills faked the handoff to Sean McHugh, then gave it to Robinson--the backup quarterback--on an end-around.

“I’m not the smartest guy in the world, but I’m smart enough to know when you’ve got a kid like Robinson, you put him in the game,� Paterno said.

Gardner intercepted Jammal Lord’s pass, intended for Ben Cornelson, and returned it 44 yards for a touchdown to make it 26-7.

After holding Nebraska (3-1) to three and out, Penn State got the ball on its own 45. Larry Johnson took the first play 35 yards up the middle, and Robinson--lined up now at tailback--ran for nine yards, then 11 for a touchdown to give the Nittany Lions a 33-7 lead with 2:15 left in the third quarter.

“In the second half, they put points on the board, and it just kind of snowballed,� Nebraska Coach Frank Solich said. “It did seem we played the game with greatly diminished energy as we fell behind.�

No. 22 Wisconsin 24, Northern Illinois 21--Quarterback Brooks Bollinger scored a touchdown on a two-yard run with 1:21 left, allowing the Badgers (4-0) to dodge the upset-minded Huskies (1-2) of the Mid-American Conference at Madison, Wis. Northern Illinois sacked Bollinger 10 times, held Anthony Davis--the Big Ten’s leading rusher last season--to 49 yards in 10 carries and had 455 total yards to Wisconsin’s 275.

Iowa State 36, Iowa 31--Seneca Wallace completed 23 of 37 passes for 361 yards and a touchdown and ran for another score as the Cyclones (3-1) rallied to beat the Hawkeyes (2-1) at Iowa City. Iowa State scored three touchdowns in the first 10 minutes of the second half and added a safety to erase Iowa’s 24-7 halftime lead and beat the Hawkeyes for the fifth consecutive time.

Northwestern 26, Duke 21--Brett Basanez threw to Jon Schweighardt for touchdown plays of 34 and 38 yards at Evanston, Ill., as the Wildcats (1-2) ended a losing streak that dated to last season at eight. Alex Wade rushed for a career-high 134 yards for Duke (1-2). The Blue Devils, who ended an overall losing streak at 23 games in their season opener against East Carolina, have lost 14 road games in a row.

Purdue 28, Western Michigan 24--John Standeford had seven catches for 143 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-deciding score on a 30-yard pass play from Kyle Orton with 5:26 left, as the Boilermakers (2-1) rallied to beat the Broncos (1-2) at West Lafayette, Ind.

Minnesota 31, Toledo 21--Junior quarterback Asad Abdul-Khaliq rushed for a career-high 103 yards and a touchdown and also threw for a score to lead the Golden Gophers (3-0) at Minneapolis. William Bratton ran for 114 yards and three touchdowns for Toledo (2-1). The Rockets stunned Minnesota, 38-7, at Toledo last season.

Kentucky 27, Indiana 17-- Jared Lorenzen threw three touchdown passes and running back Artose Pinner had 233 total yards as the Wildcats (3-0) defeated the Hoosiers (1-2) at Lexington, Ky. The game was delayed twice for a total of 58 minutes because of heavy rain and lightning.

Illinois 59, Arkansas State 7-- At Champaign, Ill., Jon Beutjer--a transfer from Iowa--passed for 266 yards and four touchdowns in his first start for the Illini (1-2). Illinois also got 131 yards rushing and three touchdowns from freshman Morris Virgil, whose 69-yard scoring run was the longest for the Illini since 1988. Arkansas State is 1-3.