BY GREG PICKEL | gpickel@pennlive.com

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Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley throws a 93-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver KJ Hamler against the Ohio State defense in the second quarter on Sept. 29, 2018. Barry Reeger | Special to PennLive

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STATE COLLEGE -- Penn State has suffered its first defeat in 2018, as Ohio State erased a 12-point deficit to stun the Nittany Lions and a record Beaver Stadium crowd by a 27-26 count Saturday night.

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The tone struck by head coach James Franklin and the team's best leader, quarterback Trace McSorley, was one of frustrating and agitation more than anger. That's because, once again, the game was there to be won but a play was missed here or there, throughout the game, that equaled a one-point Buckeye victory for the second year in a row.

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In the Sunday situation, we dive into the Lions' final play call on 4th and 5, McSorley's tone-setting comments, look at the recruiting crowd, and jump ahead to the bye week as Penn State enters a week off before hosting Michigan State in two weeks.

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What happened on Penn State's 4th and 5 play call?

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Penn State head coach James Franklin stands at midfield after their 27-26 loss to Ohio State on Sept. 29, 2018. Joe Hermitt | jhermitt@pennlive.com

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With its best shot at a marquee victory and a chance to catapult into the College Football Playoff Four a month before the first committee rankings come out, most assumed that the Nittany Lions would let the outcome in Trace McSorley’s hands.

Instead, the play call, after a timeout by both Ohio State and Penn State, was a hand off to junior tailback Miles Sanders after McSorley shifted him from one side to the other before the snap.

The motion did not work, though, as Sanders lost two yards and the Lions suffered defeat for the first time this season.

What happened, exactly, in McSorley’s mind?

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“We knew they were going to make their linebackers jump when we moved Miles, and they weren’t going to be set in position, and it was going to give us a chance to get a hole up the middle and crease them,” McSorley said.

“That’s what our thought process was. We weren’t able to pick up a twist, and a guy got in the backfield and made a play.”

That guy, Ohio State sophomore Chase Young, made all sorts of plays on Saturday night in place of injured star end Nick Bosa. But the Lions picked that play not because of the future first-round NFL Draft pick was absent, but because they thought before game day that it could work.

“It was something we talked about during the week,” McSorley said. “If we were able to get the front we had, and if we were able to crease them and cut off the twist, than they would be short gaps and we could crease them up the middle.”

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Instead, Young made a terrific play and shut off Sanders before he could even get going. It was the glaring difference in this one, but also among many minor plays during the game that led to the final outcome.

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So, what happens next?

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Penn State quarterback Trace McSorley runs during the fourth quarter on Sept. 29, 2018. Joe Hermitt | jhermitt@pennlive.com

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Franklin was in rare form following the game. Yes, he was angry and upset that his players, who have worked for nine months for this game, are hurt after losing by a point for the second year in a row.

He sounded more frustrated, though, about the lack of another jump as the program aims to climb the ladder to be among the nation’s best teams.

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“Right now, we are comfortable being great,” Franklin said, mid rant during his opening statement. “ I am going to make sure that everyone in our program, including myself, is very uncomfortable because you only grow in life when you are uncomfortable. So, we are going to break through and become an elite program by doing all the little things. Lose by one point this year, lose by one point last year, you make that up by all the little things. By going to class consistently so the coaches don’t have to babysit you and we can spend our time developing you as men and as people and as players, and not be babysitting little things. Don’t get me wrong, our guys do a great job with going to class, but there are two or three guys.

“It’s all the little things that are going to matter and we are going to find a way to get from being a great program – which we are just so everyone is crystal clear. We are a great program. We lost to an elite program, and we are that close. We have gotten comfortable being great, we will no longer be comfortable being great.”

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How will the program go about doing that? Obviously the coaches can only do so much. At some point, the player leaders must ensure that it happens, and ultimately, each player must feel accountable enough to himself and his teammates to buy in.

“For one, it’s pushing guys, making them feel a little bit uncomfortable. If they don’t want to do some of the things, it’s calling them out,” McSorley said, “and letting them know that ‘you’re not doing what’s being asked of you, and you need to start buying in and doing those things.’

“We talked about it all last year, we talked about it all offseason; now, maybe experiencing again for a lot of guys, maybe that’s the click. It’s going to be a lot on me, just stressing these little details.”

If that sounds like a different tone than the one Franklin and McSorley usually strike, it’s because it is. Clearly, the Lions have some work to do to get on the same page, and you can bet the bye week will feature a focus on that.

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Recruiting crowd lives up to the pregame billing

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Penn State recruit Julian Fleming waits for the team to arrive before the Ohio State game on Sept. 29, 2018. Joe Hermitt | jhermitt@pennlive.com

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Penn State hosted over 175 recruits for Saturday’s thrilling defeat, and the group was star-studded. In fact, some longtime observers considered it among the best, if not the best, one-game crowd ever assembled.

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The Class of 2019 crew did end up featuring five-star Ohio end Zach Harrison along with Florida four-star corner John Dixon, New York four-star end Adisa Isaac, four-star Indianapolis receiver David Bell, and four-star West Virginia tight end Brenton Strange, among others.

The Class of 2020 was headlined by Southern Columbia five-star receiver Julian Fleming, Maryland five-star end Bryan Bresee, and Florida four-star linebacker Derek Wingo, among many others.

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No commitments occurred before 2:30 a.m. ET, but the Lions did send out a new offer to a Pennsylvania prospect: Warwick Class of 2021 lineman Nolan Rucci.

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The final word

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Penn State wide receivers Brandon Polk, Juwan Johnson and running back Miles Sanders during the alma mater after their 27-26 loss to Ohio State on Sept. 29, 2018. Joe Hermitt | jhermitt@pennlive.com

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Penn State will be back in the building on Saturday to start looking for ways to fix what went wrong while diving into the tape from five games overall to see what can be fixed and built on moving forward.

An 11-1 season and Playoff hopes are still in play, even if they took a hit on Saturday night.

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Rest assured, too, that Franklin will make sure everything gets accomplished this week.

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“It’s getting everybody to commit to waking up every single day and trying to be the best you possibly can be, and we haven’t done that,” he said. “We’ve gotten to a point where we are great, and we’re comfortable with being great. That’s the issue. We haven’t broken through with these types of programs yet. That’s everything. Every single thing matters. I’m going to be all over all of it. Myself, the coaches, the players, the trainers, the doctors, the facilities, the administration—all of it.

“Because no one’s happy with this. Our fans aren’t happy. I’m not happy with it. I could sit here and say it’s a moral victory and all that because we lost to a higher-ranked team by one point. No. It’s not good enough. So, if I drove everybody crazy the last four years, we’re going to take it to a whole other level.”

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