Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford named Big Ten offensive player of the week
Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford is the Big Ten offensive player of the week. The Nittany Lion senior completed 23 of 31 passes for 295 yards, four touchdowns, and one interception in a 45-17 PSU win over Minnesota.
“I’m proud of Sean and he’s a battler, he’s resilient, and he’s tough,” head coach James Franklin said Saturday night. “He played well. If you look around the country, there are a lot of programs that would be super excited and happy about Sean Clifford being the quarterback and what he was able to do tonight against one of the better defenses in the country. I’m proud of Sean and I love our whole quarterback room.”
Clifford won his second Big Ten offensive player of the week honor of the season. He was last recognized following the Lions’ season-opening win over Purdue. It’s the fourth such honor of his career. The Penn State passer is now the second Lion to throw for more than 9,000 yards in his career. And, he now has 10 outings with 250 yards or more and three or more touchdowns.
After the win, Clifford gave a shoutout to the group that kept him upright throughout the contest. Penn State surrendered no sacks in its sixth triumph of the season.
“I thought that the o-line played a tremendous game,” Clifford said. “Played the whole game with them. You saw it throughout the whole game and I had so much time I was able to pretty much have my way sitting back there in the pocket. Maybe one or two pressures, maybe. So kudos to them. Love those guys up front.”
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Penn State preps for Ohio State
Clifford and the offense will need to produce a similar effort this week if they hope to knock off No. 2 Ohio State. The Buckeyes are listed as a 15.5-point favorite on most gambling sites. The over/under total is 61.5.
“Right now we’re just enjoying the win and kind of that satisfaction of the work that we put in throughout the week,” Lions offensive tackle Bryce Effner said Saturday night. “Then tomorrow, it is going to be 100 percent Ohio State.”
Penn State moved up to No. 13 in the Associated Press top-25 following the impressing win over the Golden Gophers. It goes without saying that they would jump back into the top-10 with a win over the Buckeyes. But, that is a big ask, even if the game is at Beaver Stadium. Kickoff is set for Noon ET on FOX. The network’s top crew of Gus Johnson, Joel Klatt, and Jenny Taft will have the call.
