So far, so good for the Penn St. Nittany Lions. Penn St. currently leads Illinois, 14-0, after the first quarter of play.
The Nittany Lions got the scoring underway early in the first quarter. Penn St.'s first offensive possession resulted in a three-and-out, but Illinois return man Tommy Davis fumbled the punt, giving Penn St. the ball at the Illinois 26-yard line.
Penn St. received another break on that drive. On 4th-and-3 from the Illinois 7-yard line, an Illinois defender ran into the kicker, setting up the Nittany Lions with 1st-and-goal. Zach Zwinak punched it in for Penn St., giving the Nittany Lions an early 7-0 lead.
Bill O'Brien's defensive unit forced a quick three-and-out for Illinois, helping to carry over the momentum from the Nittany Lions' first touchdown.
Penn St. added another touchdown on their next possession, marching down the field for an eight play, 60 yard touchdown drive, capped off by a 1-yard touchdown run by Matthew McGloin on a quarterback sneak.
Illinois threatened to add points late in the first quarter, after a 52-yard run from Donovonn Young that brought the ball to Penn St.'s 11 yard line. Illinois' drive stalled, however, and Taylor Zalewski missed a 26-yard field goal.