Penn State vs. Northwestern 2002 GAME STORY

Larry Johnson was the story of this home route over Northwestern as he broke Curt Warner's 20 year record of rushing yards in a single game at Penn State. The truth was, if Johnson would have played the entire game he would have had a solid crack at setting the NCAA single-game record, as he took the bench after his record setting run, which was just after halftime. Even Johnson's backup, Mike Gasperato, ended up with close to 100 yards on the ground. The rest of the offense was clicking at a high level also, as Zack Mills tossed a pair of touchdowns including a beautiful bomb to Tony Johnson. The defense was smothering, as they got to Northwestern's quarterback all day. The shutout was the cherry on top in a dominating fashion for Penn State to gear up for next week's huge test at Ohio State.

Penn State's Top Performers:

Larry Johnson: 257 rushing yards, 2 TDs
Zack Mills: 10-15, 120 yards, 2 TDs
Gino Capone: 7 tackles, 3 TFLs, 2 QB Sacks

Penn State picked up another win to make it 5-2 on the year. Northwestern fell to 2-6 after the loss and ended up 3-9 and a last place finish in the Big Ten standings, in the 2002 season.