Football


Penn State 26, Kentucky 14


Scoring Summary

Kentucky 14 0 0 0 14
Penn State 3 10 6 7 26
UK – Mickelsen, 36 pass from Couch (Hanson kick), 7:43 1Q
PSU – Forney, 43 FG, 5:25 1Q
UK – A. White, 16 pass from Couch (Hanson kick), 3:51 1Q
PSU – Nastasi, 56 pass from Thompson (Forney kick), 12:33 2Q
PSU – Forney, 26 FG, 1:03 2Q
PSU – Forney, 21 FG, 7:51 3Q
PSU – Forney, 25 FG, 0:13 3Q
PSU – Fields, 19 run (Forney kick), 11:03 4Q

Attendance – 66,005

Jan. 1, 1999
– Playing on New Year’s Day for the first time in 47 years, the Kentucky Wildcats jumped out to an early lead, but the Penn State Nittany Lions rallied for a 26-14 victory in the Outback Bowl in Tampa, Fla.

Although the game was played in Tampa, the Wildcats certainly felt at home. Heavy ticket demand gave the Outback Bowl its first sellout ever, as more than 40,000 UK fans were packed among the 66,005 patrons in Raymond James Stadium.

Kentucky got on the board first with 7:36 remaining in the first quarter. At the PSU 36-yard line, under heavy pressure, quarterback Tim Couch lofted a rainbow into the end zone that wide receiver Lance Mickelsen caught for a touchdown.

Later in the opening period, UK stretched the lead to 14-3 with a 64-yard drive, capped by a 16-yard TD pass from Couch to halfback Anthony White. Key plays on the drive included a 22-yard pass from Couch to wide receiver Kevin Coleman and a 30-yard aerial to Mickelsen.

From the second quarter, however, Penn State chipped away. Quarterback Kevin Thompson hit flanker Joe Nastasi with a 56-yard touchdown bomb. A second field goal from Travis Forney narrowed the UK advantage to 14-13 at halftime.

The Nittany Lions took the lead for good in the third quarter on two more field goals by Forney, giving him four on the day. Penn State put the game away in the fourth quarter with a 19-yard end-around TD run by Chafie Fields.

Meanwhile, the PSU defense shut out the Wildcats the last three quarters. Kentucky continued to move the ball, but three scoring opportunities came up empty – one on an interception, one on a missed field goal, and the other when the Wildcats were held on downs.

Kentucky actually outgained Penn State, 441 yards to 420. UK might have done even better, but the Wildcats offensive line was missing three senior starters, all of whom were replaced by freshmen.

Couch paced the attack by completing 30 of 48 passes for 336 yards and two TDs, completing his streak of at least 300 passing yards and at least one TD pass in every game this season. Running backs Anthony White and Derek Homer caught seven balls each. White totaled 101 yards on the day, with eight rushes for 61 yards and seven receptions for 40 yards.


Team Statistics

                 Kentucky  Penn StateFirst Downs            24       24Rush Attempts/  Net Rushing Yds. 33/105   43/233Passing C/A/I     30/48/2  14/27/0Net Passing Yards     336      187Offensive Plays        81       70Total Offense         441      420Fumbles/Lost          1/1      1/1Penalties/Yards    14/103     8/58Punts/Average      3/17.0   3/30.3Third Down Conv.     4/15     3/13Time of Possession  32:53    27:07


Individual Statistics

– Rushing –

Kentucky:

A. White 8-61, Homer 12-26

Penn State:

McCoo 21-105, Harris 13-54, Fields 2-48-1TD, Cerimele 5-21

– Passing –

Kentucky:

Couch 30/48/2/336/2TD

Penn State:

Thompson 14/27/0/187/1TD

– Receiving –

Kentucky:

Mickelsen 3-65-1TD, Homer 6-64, Coleman 3-47, A. White 7-40-1TD

Penn State:

Stewart 7-71, Nastasi 2-70-1TD, McCoo 3-32

– Tackles –

Kentucky:

Zurcher 13, Da. Johnson 11, E. Kelly 11, Snedegar 11

Penn State:

King 11, Short 8, Brown 7, Arrington 7

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