UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Five Penn State football student-athletes have been selected to several All-Bowl Teams, headlined by senior placekicker Sam Ficken (Valparaiso, Indiana).
Coach James Franklin’s Nittany Lions rallied from a 14-point deficit late in the third quarter to defeat Boston College, 31-30, in overtime in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl in Yankee Stadium. A sellout, Pinstripe Bowl record crowd of 49,012 attended the thrilling Penn State victory.
Ficken was named to the Associated Press and SI.com All-Bowl Teams. The Penn State season record holder with 24 field goals in 2014, he connected on a 45-yard field goal with 20 seconds left to tie the game at 24-all and force overtime. Following Christian Hackenberg’s (Palmyra, Virginia) 10-yard touchdown pass to tight end Kyle Carter (Bear, Delaware) in overtime, Ficken connected on his fourth PAT of the contest for the game-winning point to spark a wild celebration on the field and in the stands.
Selected to the ESPN.com Big Ten All-Bowl Team were freshman wide receiver Chris Godwin (Middletown, Delaware), sophomore quarterback Hackenberg, junior cornerback Jordan Lucas (New Rochelle, New York) and junior defensive tackle Anthony Zettel (West Branch, Michigan).
Hackenberg and Zettel also were named to the BTN.com All-Bowl Team.
Hackenberg broke or tied nine Penn State bowl records with his 34 of 50, 371-yard, four-touchdown, no-interception performance. He directed his fifth career fourth-quarter or overtime comeback win. Hackenberg connected with Godwin on a 72-yard scoring strike to open the scoring, tied for the longest completion in Penn State bowl history. Godwin made seven catches for 140 yards for his first career 100-yard game.
A first-team All-Big Ten selection, Zettel was a disruptive force in the win over the Eagles. Zettel posted a game-high two tackles-for-loss (minus-7) and recorded six tackles (five solo). His 17 TFL for the season ranked No. 2 in Big Ten. Lucas made seven tackles (five solo), including a six-yard sack deep in BC territory in the fourth quarter to help force a punt. Penn State scored on the ensuing possession to tie the game at 21-21. Lucas helped limit BC to 97 passing yards.
Penn State’s 28 bowl victories lead the Big Ten and are tied for third-highest in the nation with Georgia and Oklahoma. The Nittany Lions’ 64.4 bowl winning percentage (28-15-2) is No. 2 nationally for teams with at least 20 bowl appearances. USC leads at 67.3 percent.
Penn State football will host The Signature Event on Wednesday, Feb. 4, giving fans an opportunity to learn more about the Nittany Lions’ Class of 2015. Fans are invited to attend this free event in Rec Hall and hear from Franklin as he discusses each signee on National Letter of Intent Day. The doors will open at 6 p.m. for general admission seating, with the program starting at 7 p.m. Parking is available in the Nittany Parking Deck and other campus lots at the normal rate.
Penn State and Wisconsin are the only Big Ten teams to earn at least 10 consecutive winning seasons. Franklin is among just three Penn State head coaches to win at least seven games in his first season in Happy Valley in the program’s 128 years.
The Nittany Lions return 15 starters (seven offense, seven defense, one specialist) and 14 additional players who have started, for the 2015 season. The Blue-White Game is April 18 in Beaver Stadium and the season opener is Sept. 5 against Temple at Lincoln Financial Field.
Penn State Football is on Twitter (@PennStateFball) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/PSUFball).