Check out the highs and lows in Penn State's win over Temple at Beaver Stadium on Saturday.
McGloin finished with a career-best 318 yards passing.
GAME BALL (OFFENSE) - Matt McGloin - Penn State
Penn State' senior signal-caller put forth an excellent performance on Saturday, having a hand in all three of the Nittany Lions' touchdowns. He completed 24 of 36 passes for 318 yards and a touchdown, while finding the end zone twice as a ballcarrier. The lone blemish on his day was an interception that should have been caught by the receiver.
GAME BALL (DEFENSE) - Jordan Hill - Penn State
Though linebacker Michael Mauti made a strong case for another honor, it was Hill who caused chaos along the interior all day. He finished with seven tackles, second on the team, and added a sack and a forced fumble on the day.
GAME BALL (SPECIAL TEAMS) - Brandon McManus - Temple
Temple's do-it-all specialist was just that on Saturday, as he averaged 48.5 yards per punt and nailed both of his field goal attempts on the day. The only kickoff the North Penn graduate had that didn't end up in the end zone was an onside effort at the end of the game that the Owls nearly recovered.
PLAY OF THE GAME - Matt McGloin held on in the pocket as long as he could and took a shot when he let go of the ball, but it was worth it as he hit Allen Robinson on a post pattern on a first quarter fourth down. Robinson somehow kept his footing and scooted 41 yards for his fifth touchdown of the season.
BEST PASS - Facing 3rd and 5 just inside Temple territory in the third quarter, Penn State quarterback Matt McGloin found slot receiver Alex Kenney open over the middle in a play the ended up gaining 17 yards. Three plays later, McGloin found the end zone on the ground.
WORST PASS - Temple had a slim margin for error if it wanted to walk out of Happy Valley with a win, so chances like a Chris Coyer throwback pass to a wide open Cody Booth needed to be cashed in. Coyer overshot his target and the Owls were forced to kick the field goal.
BEST RUN - Penn State quarterback Matt McGloin turned a busted play into Penn State's first rushing touchdown of the season with a gritty effort to get into the end zone from a yard out just before halftime. The score gave the Nittany Lions a 14-3 lead.
WORST RUN - Penn State came out of the gate on its second play with a two quarterback look out of the shotgun with Matt McGloin taking the snap and handing it to Paul Jones. It didn't work. Jones was dropped for a 7-yard loss.
BEST CATCH - Penn State tight end Kyle Carter kept his eye on the ball and did an excellent job of keeping his feet in bounds on a 20-yard completion from Matt McGloin in the first quarter.
WORST DROP - Penn State wide receiver Brandon Moseby-Felder let a Matt McGloin offering slip through his own hands and into the waiting arms of Temple defensive back Tavon Young, killing a Nittany Lions drive in the Red Zone in the second quarter.
BEST KICK - Temple punter Brandon McManus showed off his big leg on his first attempt of the game, booming a 58-yarder on the fly which ended up netting 63 yards thanks to good coverage.
WORST KICK - Penn State punter Alex Butterworth tried out a rugby style kick early in the fourth quarter, but it did not pay off as he shanked an effort that netted just 15 yards.
BEST RETURN - After a disastrous first punt return in the first quarter that lost five yards, Penn State got going in the right direction on its second try with Jesse Della Valle slicing his way for 29 yards to give the Nittany Lions excellent field position.
BEST TACKLE - Penn State defensive tackle Jordan Hill was able to knife through the interior of the Temple offensive line and drop Temple running back Montel Harris for no gain in the second quarter deep in its own territory.
BEST HIT - He may not have gotten to the quarterback in time, but Penn State linebacker Gerald Hodges let Temple quarterback Chris Coyer know that he was around as he clocked him following a release in the second quarter.
BEST SACK - Penn State linebacker Mike Hull closed like a rocket on Temple quarterback Chris Coyer and drilled him for an 8-yard loss in the first quarter. The loss brought up a fourth down.
BEST CALL - Penn State decided to rest running back Curtis Dukes' thigh injury for the week, opening the door for fullback converts Michael Zordich and Zach Zwinak to get carries for the Nittany Lions. The two combined for 171 yards on the ground on 34 carries - a shade over 5.0 yards per carry.
WORST CALL - A pass interference call on Penn State tight end Kyle Carter in the first quarter ruled out a big gain by teammate Matt Lehman and set the Nittany Lions back on what was once a promising drive.
HEADS UP AWARD - Temple quarterback Chris Coyer was the beneficiary of a timely bounce that avoided the arms of Penn State linebacker Glenn Carson and fell back into his lap after a second quarter fumble.
MOST TELLING STATISTIC - 3 of 12
As dominating as the Nittany Lions were on offense, outgaining the Owls 491-237 in total yardage, it was the defense's ability to get off the field that made this week different from the past three. Temple was only able to convert three of 12 third down opportunities and were unable to pick up a first down on their only fourth down conversion attempt.
