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BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — As it turns out, the key for Penn State to secure a late lead was simple. Just have a player tie the school record for sacks in the final six minutes of the game.

That’s what it finally took for the Nittany Lions to break their string of nausea-inducing losses, avoiding a third straight blown lead in the fourth quarter thanks in large part to Shaka Toney.

The sophomore pass-rushing specialist came up with four sacks in a span of 4:48 of game time in the final quarter on Saturday to help Penn State escape Indiana with a 33-28 win.

Where there might have been doubt or nerves — or even adrenaline — for the Lions, Toney said his heart rate wasn’t overly elevated.

“There’s really no up or downs for me. I’m a mellow guy,” Toney said. “Real laid-back. Just a kid from West Philadelphia. I’ve played football my whole life. So when you make plays, my high school coach always taught me when you make plays, act like you’re supposed to make them.

“I’ve had stretches like that. But it’s all about Penn State right now.”

What might have been been the worst of three straight losses despite a late fourth-quarter lead was calmed down by a second-team defensive end who became the fourth Lions player to record four sacks in a game, joining Terry Killens (1995), Jimmy Kennedy (2002) and Tamba Hali (2005).

None of those did it quite like Toney, however, as the Lions (5-2, 2-2 Big Ten) were in danger of seeing a 12-point lead in the fourth evaporate, just like it did last month vs. Ohio State.

With Penn State leading 33-21 with 6:18 to play, Toney first forced Hoosiers quarterback Peyton Ramsey to take an intentional grounding penalty, getting credited with a 16-yard sack.

That drive ultimately ended with a Nick Scott interception. But for the third straight game, Penn State’s offense couldn’t get a first down to put the game away.

In fact, on the ensuing drive, the Lions threw three straight passes — two incomplete passes sandwiched around a pass to Miles Sanders for no gain. Indiana only burned one timeout and Penn State ran a mere 29 seconds off the clock to keep the Hoosiers alive.

Against Ohio State, a 26-14 lead with eight minutes left didn’t hold. Last week, a 17-14 lead didn’t hold as Michigan State drove 76 yards in the final 1:10 to score a touchdown to win.

“A few weeks before, our four-minute offense, we ran the ball multiple times and didn’t get a first down,” Lions coach James Franklin said. “So we wanted to be aggressive right there.

“We’ve gone back and forth with it and what we need to do, and it comes down to getting first downs. Obviously, this situation didn’t work either.”

Indiana got the ball back, only to have Toney come up with a 4-yard sack at the 3:08 mark to force fourth down.

The Hoosiers converted and eventually reached the red zone.

With 1:08 left, Toney came free for a 2-yard sack, forcing a fumble that Indiana (4-4, 1-4) managed to recover. Three plays later on fourth-and-12, the Hoosiers threw a 21-yard touchdown to pull within five points.

The Lions had been 0-for-2 on recovering onside kicks this season, though the first two had been surprise attempts by Appalachian State and Kent State.

This time, Brandon Polk looked to easily corral the bouncing ball to end the game.

Nope. Penn State had called timeout at the last second. Franklin explained afterward that the unit wasn’t aligned correctly.

On the second try, Scott couldn’t come up with it and the Hoosiers recovered at their own 42 with 49 seconds left.

Shareef Miller forced a holding penalty on the first play of the final drive. Then Toney hit the history books on the next play, dropping Ramsey for a loss of 7.

Facing second-and-27, it was too much for Indiana to overcome to get into position for a Hail Mary.

“I’m just so excited for my defensive line that we stepped up in major ways that people probably wouldn’t have expected us to do,” Toney said. “There’s a lot of critics out there. But I know my defensive line comes to play every single game. And I know our leaders, Shareef Miller, he gets us up for every game with the mindset that we’re going to be the greatest show on turf.

“(Defensive line coach Sean) Spencer’s always on us about closing the game. Putting the game on our shoulders. (My teammates) make it really easy for a guy like me to just go out there and make plays. … Everybody’s just making sure they’re going to contribute. So when the end of the game comes, we’re all fresh. We all rotate.”

Toney didn’t have much opportunity to get after the quarterback earlier in the game because Indiana was busy running it down the Lions’ throat to the tune of 224 rushing yards. The Hoosiers finished with a whopping 554 total yards and ran a dizzying 100 plays on offense.

Penn State, meanwhile, picked up 417 on 73 plays. Trace McSorley racked up 327 total yards (107 rushing) and scored twice on the ground.

Sanders had another touchdown run on the opening drive and Tommy Stevens hit Pat Freiermuth for another score while Jake Pinegar booted two short field goals on a windy day.

The Lions might have been in an even more dire situation without some turnover luck. Penn State players muffed a kickoff or punt a total of four times and managed to recover all of them.

Indiana fumbled away one return and Scott came up with the recovery, one of three takeaways for the Lions on the day.

Up next is three straight games against ranked opponents, with Iowa coming to Beaver Stadium next week followed by games against Michigan and Wisconsin.

The Lions said they have to be better to come out of that stretch with wins.

“Absolutely,” Toney said. “Finisher’s mentality. (Spencer) puts a lot of pressure on us to make sure we finish games. … We’re going to make sure we finish games from now on.”

Penn State’s defensive ends finished with six sacks on the day, with Yetur Gross-Matos (99) coming up with two and Shaka Toney tying a school record with four.
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/web1_AP18293854217531_ne2018102021352715-1.jpg.optimal.jpgPenn State’s defensive ends finished with six sacks on the day, with Yetur Gross-Matos (99) coming up with two and Shaka Toney tying a school record with four. Doug McSchooler | AP photo

Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley celebrates after scoring what proved to be the winning touchdown in the fourth quarter against Indiana on Saturday.
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/web1_AP18293853651097_ne201810202135220-1.jpg.optimal.jpgPenn State quarterback Trace McSorley celebrates after scoring what proved to be the winning touchdown in the fourth quarter against Indiana on Saturday. Doug McSchooler | AP photo
Record day forDE Toney helpssecure PSU win

By Derek Levarse

[email protected]

Reach Derek Levarse at 570-991-6396 or on Twitter @TLdlevarse

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