Mills does it all as Nittany Lions rip Zips
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) – Michael Robinson has had his turn. This time, it was Zack the multi-back. Zack Mills ran for a touchdown, caught a TD and threw two scoring passes to lead Penn State to a 48-10 victory over Akron on Saturday in the season opener for both teams.
The Nittany Lions quarterback became the first Penn State player to accomplish the rare triple under Joe Paterno, who started his 39th season as head coach with career victory 340.
“It sounds like it’s a mistake, and Mike should be the one to do something like that,” Mills said.
“People underestimate his athletic ability,” said Robinson, who had been dubbed a multi-back after earning starts at quarterback, tailback and fullback. He started Saturday at wide receiver. “He can do a lot of things. Just today, it finally came together for him.”
Mills made it 14-3 with a 5-yard touchdown run with 50 seconds left in the first quarter. The Nittany Lions then got the ball back when Brett Biggs fumbled on the Zips’ first play.
Robinson stepped in at quarterback for Penn State, rolled right and pump-faked, then threw a fade to Mills, who made his first career catch in the corner of the end zone for a 21-3 lead at the end of the first.
“It was the perfect call against the blitz,” Mills said. “Mike threw a perfect ball.”
Mills returned the favor late in the second quarter, throwing a 10-yard touchdown pass to Robinson on a play set up by Anwar Phillips’ 47-yard interception return – the first of Phillips’ two interceptions.
It was Mills’ second touchdown pass of the game, following a 17-yarder to Terrance Phillips earlier in the second.
The Nittany Lions led 41-3 at halftime.
Penn State’s offense, which floundered throughout last year’s 3-9 season, at times seemed unstoppable. Mills and Robinson combined to complete 12 of 15 passes to a receiver corps that earned a reputation for drops last year.
Tony Hunt rushed for 137 yards and a touchdown, and Austin Scott rushed for 116 yards and two touchdowns. Last year, Paterno sidelined both players late in the season over concerns about their experience.
“I think experience is the biggest thing,” Paterno said. “They were good backs when we recruited them – we knew they were good backs. It’s tough to go in there last year. We just wanted a really good football team last year, and they weren’t good enough to carry it.”
Hunt – freed up by a Robinson block – ran 77 yards for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead on Penn State’s second play from scrimmage.
Scott’s touchdowns were a 1-yard leap over the top in the second quarter, then a 3-yard option in the third.
“They were some big athletes out there that broke a lot of tackles and made people miss,” Akron coach J.D. Brookhart said. “I thought they did a good job offensively. They really had us off balance with some good things in the play-action part.”
Charlie Frye completed 29 of 36 passes for 223 yards, but Akron didn’t reach the end zone until late in the fourth quarter, when Biggs rushed in from 1 yard out to make it 48-10.
The Zips had to settle for a field goal in the first quarter after Frye was sacked on a third-and-goal from the 2-yard line. Jason Swiger’s 27-yard field goal made it 7-3.
“The biggest disappointing thing for us was not being able to get it in down in the red zone. That’s something we need to improve on greatly,” Frye said. “We marched the ball down the field – we just can’t walk away with three or nothing. Touchdowns are what’s going to win you the games.”