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That's Just Trace (Sporting News)

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May 29, 2001
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STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Trace McSorley remembers the first time he silenced his doubters.

He was making his start at quarterback — not at Penn State, where he's becoming one of the most-beloved players in the program's history — but as a freshman at Briar Woods High School in Ashburn, Va.

His task was simple that Friday night way back on Aug. 27, 2010: Get the ball to star running back Michael Brownlee and get out of the way. Briar Woods used a power running game, and McSorley, at 5-10 and 190 pounds, needed only to execute that game plan against Millbrook High School in the season-opener.

Plans change. Brownlee fractured his leg on his first carry. Things got worse; the Falcons' second- and third-string backs went down with injuries too. McSorley was no longer a game manager. No way the quarterback could do this, on the road, in his first start — right?

"I kind of had to step up," McSorley told Sporting News. "It was a back-and-forth game, real low-scoring. We were able to move the ball but didn't score too much. Right at the end of the game we were down by one point and needed a two-minute drive with over a minute left."

Then, McSorley did to Millbrook what he'd go on to replicate at Penn State. He led a pivotal, game-winning drive. He moved the ball 90 yards downfield, converted two fourth downs and set Briar Woods up for the go-ahead field goal as time expired.

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A smile rolls across McSorley's face as he reflects on that moment. It's June 11, 2018. He sits on the balcony at the Penn State Lasch Building and watches the sun push through the fog rising from distant Mount Nittany. McSorley is Sporting News' top-ranked quarterback heading into 2018, and the vantage point now is a lot different from that first game at Millbrook.

"I think that was the first time," McSorley said, pausing. "For me to be able to taste the feeling of being a leader and at the same time being a winner."



Over the next four years, McSorley led Briar Woods to a 55-5 record and three Virginia 4A state titles in four championship game appearances. Future Penn State teammate and co-captain Nick Scott — who played safety at nearby Fairfax, a half-hour drive from Ashburn — had never even met McSorley, but was already sick of hearing about him. Briar Woods even had Trace McSorley T-shirts, complete with career stats and accomplishments on the back.

"Everybody knew who Trace was," Scott remembers.

That's why McSorley's performances the past two years at Penn State doesn't surprise teammates. An overtime thriller against Minnesota. The comeback win against Wisconsin in the Big Ten championship game. The last-second touchdown against Iowa. The Fiesta Bowl victory against Washington. The next 7-on-7 drill in practice.

The stage doesn't matter. Leave the scores for the T-shirts.

"People ask, 'How was he able to do that?'" Scott said, before smiling and shaking his head. "How was he able to stay so calm? That phrase comes out. 'That's just Trace.'"

McSorley is 21-5 as a two-year starter heading into his senior year at Penn State, but his doubters are louder than ever. You know the most frequent submissions by now:

No way McSorley can do it without offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead, gone to Mississippi State.

No way he can do it without Saquon Barkley, the No. 2 overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft.

No way a 6-foot, 203-pound quarterback stands a chance of becoming a first-round draft pick.

No way. Except, you're dealing with a quarterback who has always found a way. It was that way in high school, too.

"Everybody told Trace he wasn't going to be a college quarterback, except James Franklin," Penn State play-by-play announcer Steve Jones said. "Everyone told Trace McSorley he had to play safety. 'That's where you have to play, Trace. You have to be a safety at the next level. You're not big enough, strong enough, not this or not that to play quarterback.'

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When James Franklin took over Penn State in 2014, he took over a program in flux. The school was still dealing with the aftermath of the Jerry Sandusky scandal, which brought an abrupt end to the Joe Paterno era, a multitude of NCAA sanctions and an uneven transition to Bill O'Brien.

Then, McSorley was just a three-star recruit, the 40th-ranked quarterback in a class featuring Deshaun Watson, Kyle Allen and Will Grier. Franklin saw McSorley's high school accomplishments, but something else stuck out on film:

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He saw the same thing from McSorley at Penn State, where he was no longer the unquestioned team leader, but the backup to Christian Hackenberg. Still, Franklin said it became clear right away players in that freshman class gravitated toward McSorley.

"This is just what he does," Franklin said. "We saw it as a freshman. He was a backup quarterback as a true freshman, and there was a buzz."

McSorley's routine still hasn't changed since his freshman year. Linebacker Koa Farmer — McSorley's roommate and another leader heading into 2018 — points out their Facebook chats to prove that point. Once somebody drops a 9 a.m. message with workout plans, a contagious thread pops up:

"Let's go!"
"Let's rock!"

"It's one of those things where our routine and the way we want to work together is why we jell," Farmer said.

It wasn't long before McSorley got to show what he was made of on the field — and a familiar theme emerged again, this time at the 2016 TaxSlayer Bowl. Hackenberg left with a shoulder injury. Interim offensive coordinator Ricky Rahne was calling plays. Georgia held a 24-3 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

"We really didn't have anything to lose, was my perspective when I came into the game," McSorley said. "Go in, let it fly and play and don't hold anything back. It was the last game of the year, and it was the last game for those seniors, so I went in and tried to go in and win it for them."

McSorley threw two fourth-quarter touchdowns and nearly led a game-tying drive in the final two minutes before the Nittany Lions stalled on the Bulldogs' 47 as time expired.

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Penn State finished the year 7-6 and ended Franklin's second season with a four-game losing streak. Hackenberg announced after the game he'd enter the NFL Draft. Still, Jones left the broadcast booth optimistic about the next chapter of Penn State football.

"You gain the trust of everybody when you go out and play in the TaxSlayer Bowl, like he did, and play the way he did," Jones said of McSorley. "Once he got his feet on the ground, he played like the Trace McSorley we see at practice every single day. The accuracy with which he throws the ball, that swagger he has on the field that is so important.

"It's swagger without arrogance."




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McSorley looks out at Beaver Stadium. He has known success here — he's 14-0 as a starter — leading Penn State in program-building wins. Ohio State in 2016. Michigan in 2017.

Those were memorable games in the Nittany Lions' climb back among college football's elite. But if you ask Rahne, now Penn State's full-time offensive coordinator, which game stands out most, he has a different answer.

"The Minnesota game from two years ago," he said. "That kind of got us going."

Penn State was 2-2 heading into that Minnesota game. Franklin was on the hot seat with a 16-14 record through three-plus seasons, including a 49-10 drubbing against Michigan the previous week. The Gophers led 13-3 in the third quarter, and Penn State was on the ropes, facing third-and-11.

No way Penn State — no way McSorley — digs out of this situation.

He dropped back before sprinting upfield in an apparent attempt to scramble. At the last second, with three Gophers defenders converging on him, McSorley pulled up at the line of scrimmage and fired across the middle to receiver Irvin Charles. Eighty yards later, Penn State cut the lead to 13-10.

"That was just kind of a play that if you look at it, we had just come off of getting beat down by Michigan. That first half against Minnesota was a struggle," McSorley said. "That play, it just kind of sparked us. There isn't another way I could really say it."


An important play, but not the last he'd make that day. With 35 seconds left in the game, Penn State trailing 23-20, McSorley scampered for a 26-yard keeper on third-and-3 from the Minnesota 48. It led to a game-tying field goal. Barkley finished the game off in overtime with a touchdown run on Penn State's first offensive play.

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That win sparked a nine-game streak to put the Nittany Lions in the Big Ten championship. It led to a classic Rose Bowl game against USC. Most importantly, it established McSorley's reputation as a winner — a quarterback who could lead Penn State with his arm, legs and mental toughness.

"That's Trace," Franklin said. "He's going to live at this upper-percentage of decision making on the field, off the field, leadership, community service, just all-out production."

A year later, he'd cement that reputation in one of college football's most challenging environments.


Kinnick Stadium, Sept. 23, 2017. Iowa led No. 4 Penn State, 19-15, with less than two minutes left after a 35-yard Akrum Wadley touchdown run. The Nittany Lions looked like the latest heavy favorite to fall prey to the Hawkeyes — like Michigan in 2016, and Ohio State later that year.

The home crowd shook with energy, another top-five win in Iowa's grasp. Farmer and Scott walked off the field following Iowa's extra point and saw a collected quarterback on the sidelines.

"Just so calm," Scott remembers of McSorley. "I think everybody could look at him and feel that we were in good hands and that we had a real shot of winning the game."

This time, they had a live message for him:

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Only, this wasn't a Facebook chat at 9 a.m. This wasn't Millbrook or overtime against Minnesota. Penn State needed a touchdown or else.

Once again, McSorley was up against it. Once again, he drove his team from its 20 — converting a fourth-and-2 in Nittany Lions territory along the way — to the Iowa 7. That set up fourth-and-goal with four seconds to go.

"I think about those two timeouts we had, right before the fourth-and-short and right before the final play of the game," McSorley said. "They did seem like they took forever, like we were out on the field for a half-hour. It got to the point where you just wanted to get on the field and run the play and get going.

"We were confident the entire time."

McSorley took the snap out of the shotgun. Barkley helped picked up Iowa's six-man rush. Tight end Mike Gesicki occupied the linebacker in the flat. Receiver Juwan Johnson, who had lobbied for a slant pass during the time out, was in the end zone. Sure enough, he popped open.

Said McSorley: "I just saw Juwan's hands." He flung the ball to Johnson through three defenders — just out of Amani Hooker's reach — and connected for the game-winner.

"I was kind of in a daze when I caught it," Johnson said. "When I made the defender lose control a little bit, I was like, 'Yeah, this has to come to me.' Trace, I just saw the ball. I didn't even see him throw it. I just saw the ball."


In 12 plays, 80 yards, two fourth-down conversions and one touchdown pass, McSorley made the plays necessary to win the game.

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Franklin and Rahne use that moment as more evidence that Penn State's quarterback delivers when needed most. It's a moment that jumps to the top of McSorley's highlight reel, even if teammate Tommy Stevens, a backup quarterback who contributes as a receiver, saw it as business as usual.

"Don't get me wrong, it was very impressive to watch. But with the standard we've set in the room and as a program, that's kind of the way we operate," Stevens said. "Trace did everything he was supposed to do and was coached to do, but it goes to show how composed, how special of a player he is.

"That's what Trace does."



McSorley's objective is simple during the special teams period of practice.

Put the ball in the bucket. It could be an end-zone fade, long ball or a simple 10-yard toss. Just put it in the bucket.

McSorley, Stevens and the other quarterbacks are in on the throwing competition, and sometimes Rahne — a three-year starter at Cornell from 1999 to 2001 — will take a few passes. Five pushups are on the line, but this competition is as heated as any at Penn State.

"We'll start talking trash to each other and try to mess each other up," McSorley said. "It's just a fun, competitive thing for us to do in the middle of practice."

Notice McSorley doesn't say he's competitive — the biggest competitors never self-advertise. Rahne notices that streak every day, especially during the bucket throw. He describes it as an "edge that people don't understand."

"He is not a very happy camper if he's not winning that," Rahne said. "The other quarterbacks know that and they're also very competitive — one of the most, if not the most competitive, rooms in the country. Those five pushups are very important."

So is the relationship with McSorley, who supported Rahne when it came time to decide who would take Moorhead's place as offensive coordinator. There's a tight dynamic there, full of give and take, and it'll be scrutinized more than ever in 2018. Penn State ranked seventh in the FBS with 41.1 points per game last year. Rahne and McSorley are tasked with replicating that.

Franklin doesn't seem worried at all.

"I think probably the story that hasn't been talked about enough is not only did Trace and Ricky Rahne do that in a bowl game," Franklin said. "They did it in a bowl game against a Washington team that had a top-10 defense; one of the best defenses in the country."

Rahne had a good feeling leading up to last year's PlayStation Fiesta Bowl. McSorley texted him constantly during the week while they tweaked their game plan. It showed up against the Huskies. McSorley finished 32 of 41 for 342 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions against the Huskies.

But those aren't the stats he cares about: What were the exact numbers on third down again?

"12 of 12," McSorley said, smiling again.

Every time the Nittany Lions needed a clutch third-down play in that Fiesta Bowl, McSorley made it, over and over and over again. He put the ball where his receivers could get it. There on the field was that confidence.

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"I wanted to say it was great play-calling," Rahne said with a laugh. "But I think we can all agree that when a quarterback goes 12 of 12 that's something that is special. That just speaks to his preparation. I think a bowl game, you get more time to prepare, and that just plays right into his hands.

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McSorley sees that performance as a sign of things to come.

“I think the Fiesta Bowl is a way to kind of look at it and feel like we can definitely bridge the gap," he said. "There is not going to be a big drop-off for us. We still have the same offense."


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Even if the McSorley-Rahne combo works out — and it should — other questions still stand. How will Penn State compete in the Big Ten East race without Barkley, Gesicki, DaeSean Hamilton and others? Can McSorley really carry this team to the College Football Playoff?

These questions are nothing new. Jones recognizes this pattern with each passing summer.

"What was the big complaint after 2016? The big complaint was, 'Yeah, he played well, but a lot of those were 50-50 balls,'" Jones said. "What he did do last year? He upped his completion percentage by nine percentage points and showed his ability to improve as a quarterback to hit that middle-range and long passes. That tells you something when somebody is not satisfied with themselves personally, and he's not."

The Nittany Lions were close to outright consecutive Big Ten East titles last year, but two regular-season losses each of the last two seasons got in the way. Those 2017 losses in particular are still on McSorley's mind.

Ohio State 39, Penn State 38.
Michigan State 27, Penn State 24.


Four points. That's all that separated Penn State from the Big Ten championship game appearance last year — and maybe something more. The oft-told story is that winners remember losses more than wins, but McSorley's outlook veers on that subject.

"I wouldn't say that you remember the losses more than the big wins," he said. "I mean, I remember all the state championship wins in high school. I remember winning the Big Ten championship, and I remember beating Ohio State and winning the Fiesta Bowl. Those stick out.

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The word that comes up most in association with McSorley among teammates and coaches now is "vocal." That role, Barkley's last year, is McSorley's now. If something isn't right in practice, he'll gather the team together and deliver that message — now, to a group of players much younger than him.

When McSorley arrived at Penn State, his classmates were drawn to him. Now, everyone is. He doesn't announce his leadership, either. Franklin wants that to continue.

"I want people to lead the way that is going to fit their personality and style," he said. "I don't want people to try to lead like someone else or be someone else. I have a very in-your-face-and-aggressive positive personality, but I can't expect Trace to lead the way I would lead. I need Trace to lead the way he leads."



The pre-written ink on Penn State for 2018 is dry. Depending on who you ask, that narrative will only strengthen this year's team under McSorley's leadership.

"Not having Saquon is such a big loss because he was such an amazing player and a good leader on the field and off the field," said tackle Ryan Bates. "I don't think that matters a lot with Trace. Obviously everyone misses Saquon, but I don't think us not having Saquon is detrimental to Trace being Trace.

"Trace is still going to be the leader, the competitor, the winner he is. That's just who he is."

Now is McSorley's time to take that spotlight once and for all, to remind his doubters, again, that appearances can be deceiving. The white bandanna, the home run swing, the fun-loving personality: That's all part of his image as the free-wheeling quarterback — the best in college football, and not just because there are fewer options in 2018.

McSorley continues to lead and continues to win. It's the same as when he first arrived on campus in 2014, part of a class determined to change the Penn State narrative.

"He'll always have that special place at Penn State," Jones said of McSorley. "He'll always be able to stand side by side with John Hufnagel, Chuck Fusina, Todd Blackledge, Kerry Collins, Michael Robinson and Daryll Clark. With the younger generation, he'll be the quarterback they remember. He's going to be their guy."

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"Not just for his production and those types of things, but for the timing of it," Franklin said. "Obviously he came to Penn State at a challenging time. We've done a lot of special things in a time period where a lot of people would have thought it would have been impossible."

He'll get a chance to add to that legacy more at the next level, too. The comparisons to Oklahoma's Baker Mayfield, last year's Heisman Trophy winner and the No. 1 pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, have already started. The competitiveness, in particular, stands out.

You can see it during a lift, where Scott says he can hear McSorley jawing with other quarterbacks in his group. You can see it on the basketball court, where he won't let Johnson stop playing until his team wins. And of course, you can see it there on the field.

As his teammates have said so many times in so many ways: That's Trace.

Now, he'll try to lead Penn State somewhere that would silence critics once and for all. All those games — against Millbrook, Georgia, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio State, Michigan State — they'll be remembered by some.

But there's a place where everyone remembers the final score.

That's the College Football Playoff, where McSorley has one final opportunity to lead Penn State this year. It's the next logical step, and it's one he has thought about all summer. Like Rahne said, that plays right into the quarterback's hands.

"For me and my legacy, that's the next step where I think I can lead this team and where I want to take this team," McSorley said. "If I can do that, and we can leave off as a Playoff team in my last year, that's the goal for my last season.

"I want to get this team there, and the legacy will define itself afterward."

In other words, he'll prove his doubters wrong once and for all.
 
Trace McSorley is a special player. Being successful at the quarterback position obviously requires more than the physical tools. McSorley has a special blend of physical skills, mental toughness, and confidence. Few have it.
 
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Trace McSorley remembers the first time he silenced his doubters.

He was making his start at quarterback — not at Penn State, where he's becoming one of the most-beloved players in the program's history — but as a freshman at Briar Woods High School in Ashburn, Va.

His task was simple that Friday night way back on Aug. 27, 2010: Get the ball to star running back Michael Brownlee and get out of the way. Briar Woods used a power running game, and McSorley, at 5-10 and 190 pounds, needed only to execute that game plan against Millbrook High School in the season-opener.

Plans change. Brownlee fractured his leg on his first carry. Things got worse; the Falcons' second- and third-string backs went down with injuries too. McSorley was no longer a game manager. No way the quarterback could do this, on the road, in his first start — right?

"I kind of had to step up," McSorley told Sporting News. "It was a back-and-forth game, real low-scoring. We were able to move the ball but didn't score too much. Right at the end of the game we were down by one point and needed a two-minute drive with over a minute left."

Then, McSorley did to Millbrook what he'd go on to replicate at Penn State. He led a pivotal, game-winning drive. He moved the ball 90 yards downfield, converted two fourth downs and set Briar Woods up for the go-ahead field goal as time expired.

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A smile rolls across McSorley's face as he reflects on that moment. It's June 11, 2018. He sits on the balcony at the Penn State Lasch Building and watches the sun push through the fog rising from distant Mount Nittany. McSorley is Sporting News' top-ranked quarterback heading into 2018, and the vantage point now is a lot different from that first game at Millbrook.

"I think that was the first time," McSorley said, pausing. "For me to be able to taste the feeling of being a leader and at the same time being a winner."



Over the next four years, McSorley led Briar Woods to a 55-5 record and three Virginia 4A state titles in four championship game appearances. Future Penn State teammate and co-captain Nick Scott — who played safety at nearby Fairfax, a half-hour drive from Ashburn — had never even met McSorley, but was already sick of hearing about him. Briar Woods even had Trace McSorley T-shirts, complete with career stats and accomplishments on the back.

"Everybody knew who Trace was," Scott remembers.

That's why McSorley's performances the past two years at Penn State doesn't surprise teammates. An overtime thriller against Minnesota. The comeback win against Wisconsin in the Big Ten championship game. The last-second touchdown against Iowa. The Fiesta Bowl victory against Washington. The next 7-on-7 drill in practice.

The stage doesn't matter. Leave the scores for the T-shirts.

"People ask, 'How was he able to do that?'" Scott said, before smiling and shaking his head. "How was he able to stay so calm? That phrase comes out. 'That's just Trace.'"

McSorley is 21-5 as a two-year starter heading into his senior year at Penn State, but his doubters are louder than ever. You know the most frequent submissions by now:

No way McSorley can do it without offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead, gone to Mississippi State.

No way he can do it without Saquon Barkley, the No. 2 overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft.

No way a 6-foot, 203-pound quarterback stands a chance of becoming a first-round draft pick.

No way. Except, you're dealing with a quarterback who has always found a way. It was that way in high school, too.

"Everybody told Trace he wasn't going to be a college quarterback, except James Franklin," Penn State play-by-play announcer Steve Jones said. "Everyone told Trace McSorley he had to play safety. 'That's where you have to play, Trace. You have to be a safety at the next level. You're not big enough, strong enough, not this or not that to play quarterback.'

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When James Franklin took over Penn State in 2014, he took over a program in flux. The school was still dealing with the aftermath of the Jerry Sandusky scandal, which brought an abrupt end to the Joe Paterno era, a multitude of NCAA sanctions and an uneven transition to Bill O'Brien.

Then, McSorley was just a three-star recruit, the 40th-ranked quarterback in a class featuring Deshaun Watson, Kyle Allen and Will Grier. Franklin saw McSorley's high school accomplishments, but something else stuck out on film:

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He saw the same thing from McSorley at Penn State, where he was no longer the unquestioned team leader, but the backup to Christian Hackenberg. Still, Franklin said it became clear right away players in that freshman class gravitated toward McSorley.

"This is just what he does," Franklin said. "We saw it as a freshman. He was a backup quarterback as a true freshman, and there was a buzz."

McSorley's routine still hasn't changed since his freshman year. Linebacker Koa Farmer — McSorley's roommate and another leader heading into 2018 — points out their Facebook chats to prove that point. Once somebody drops a 9 a.m. message with workout plans, a contagious thread pops up:

"Let's go!"
"Let's rock!"

"It's one of those things where our routine and the way we want to work together is why we jell," Farmer said.

It wasn't long before McSorley got to show what he was made of on the field — and a familiar theme emerged again, this time at the 2016 TaxSlayer Bowl. Hackenberg left with a shoulder injury. Interim offensive coordinator Ricky Rahne was calling plays. Georgia held a 24-3 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

"We really didn't have anything to lose, was my perspective when I came into the game," McSorley said. "Go in, let it fly and play and don't hold anything back. It was the last game of the year, and it was the last game for those seniors, so I went in and tried to go in and win it for them."

McSorley threw two fourth-quarter touchdowns and nearly led a game-tying drive in the final two minutes before the Nittany Lions stalled on the Bulldogs' 47 as time expired.

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Penn State finished the year 7-6 and ended Franklin's second season with a four-game losing streak. Hackenberg announced after the game he'd enter the NFL Draft. Still, Jones left the broadcast booth optimistic about the next chapter of Penn State football.

"You gain the trust of everybody when you go out and play in the TaxSlayer Bowl, like he did, and play the way he did," Jones said of McSorley. "Once he got his feet on the ground, he played like the Trace McSorley we see at practice every single day. The accuracy with which he throws the ball, that swagger he has on the field that is so important.

"It's swagger without arrogance."




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McSorley looks out at Beaver Stadium. He has known success here — he's 14-0 as a starter — leading Penn State in program-building wins. Ohio State in 2016. Michigan in 2017.

Those were memorable games in the Nittany Lions' climb back among college football's elite. But if you ask Rahne, now Penn State's full-time offensive coordinator, which game stands out most, he has a different answer.

"The Minnesota game from two years ago," he said. "That kind of got us going."

Penn State was 2-2 heading into that Minnesota game. Franklin was on the hot seat with a 16-14 record through three-plus seasons, including a 49-10 drubbing against Michigan the previous week. The Gophers led 13-3 in the third quarter, and Penn State was on the ropes, facing third-and-11.

No way Penn State — no way McSorley — digs out of this situation.

He dropped back before sprinting upfield in an apparent attempt to scramble. At the last second, with three Gophers defenders converging on him, McSorley pulled up at the line of scrimmage and fired across the middle to receiver Irvin Charles. Eighty yards later, Penn State cut the lead to 13-10.

"That was just kind of a play that if you look at it, we had just come off of getting beat down by Michigan. That first half against Minnesota was a struggle," McSorley said. "That play, it just kind of sparked us. There isn't another way I could really say it."


An important play, but not the last he'd make that day. With 35 seconds left in the game, Penn State trailing 23-20, McSorley scampered for a 26-yard keeper on third-and-3 from the Minnesota 48. It led to a game-tying field goal. Barkley finished the game off in overtime with a touchdown run on Penn State's first offensive play.

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That win sparked a nine-game streak to put the Nittany Lions in the Big Ten championship. It led to a classic Rose Bowl game against USC. Most importantly, it established McSorley's reputation as a winner — a quarterback who could lead Penn State with his arm, legs and mental toughness.

"That's Trace," Franklin said. "He's going to live at this upper-percentage of decision making on the field, off the field, leadership, community service, just all-out production."

A year later, he'd cement that reputation in one of college football's most challenging environments.


Kinnick Stadium, Sept. 23, 2017. Iowa led No. 4 Penn State, 19-15, with less than two minutes left after a 35-yard Akrum Wadley touchdown run. The Nittany Lions looked like the latest heavy favorite to fall prey to the Hawkeyes — like Michigan in 2016, and Ohio State later that year.

The home crowd shook with energy, another top-five win in Iowa's grasp. Farmer and Scott walked off the field following Iowa's extra point and saw a collected quarterback on the sidelines.

"Just so calm," Scott remembers of McSorley. "I think everybody could look at him and feel that we were in good hands and that we had a real shot of winning the game."

This time, they had a live message for him:

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Only, this wasn't a Facebook chat at 9 a.m. This wasn't Millbrook or overtime against Minnesota. Penn State needed a touchdown or else.

Once again, McSorley was up against it. Once again, he drove his team from its 20 — converting a fourth-and-2 in Nittany Lions territory along the way — to the Iowa 7. That set up fourth-and-goal with four seconds to go.

"I think about those two timeouts we had, right before the fourth-and-short and right before the final play of the game," McSorley said. "They did seem like they took forever, like we were out on the field for a half-hour. It got to the point where you just wanted to get on the field and run the play and get going.

"We were confident the entire time."

McSorley took the snap out of the shotgun. Barkley helped picked up Iowa's six-man rush. Tight end Mike Gesicki occupied the linebacker in the flat. Receiver Juwan Johnson, who had lobbied for a slant pass during the time out, was in the end zone. Sure enough, he popped open.

Said McSorley: "I just saw Juwan's hands." He flung the ball to Johnson through three defenders — just out of Amani Hooker's reach — and connected for the game-winner.

"I was kind of in a daze when I caught it," Johnson said. "When I made the defender lose control a little bit, I was like, 'Yeah, this has to come to me.' Trace, I just saw the ball. I didn't even see him throw it. I just saw the ball."


In 12 plays, 80 yards, two fourth-down conversions and one touchdown pass, McSorley made the plays necessary to win the game.

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Franklin and Rahne use that moment as more evidence that Penn State's quarterback delivers when needed most. It's a moment that jumps to the top of McSorley's highlight reel, even if teammate Tommy Stevens, a backup quarterback who contributes as a receiver, saw it as business as usual.

"Don't get me wrong, it was very impressive to watch. But with the standard we've set in the room and as a program, that's kind of the way we operate," Stevens said. "Trace did everything he was supposed to do and was coached to do, but it goes to show how composed, how special of a player he is.

"That's what Trace does."



McSorley's objective is simple during the special teams period of practice.

Put the ball in the bucket. It could be an end-zone fade, long ball or a simple 10-yard toss. Just put it in the bucket.

McSorley, Stevens and the other quarterbacks are in on the throwing competition, and sometimes Rahne — a three-year starter at Cornell from 1999 to 2001 — will take a few passes. Five pushups are on the line, but this competition is as heated as any at Penn State.

"We'll start talking trash to each other and try to mess each other up," McSorley said. "It's just a fun, competitive thing for us to do in the middle of practice."

Notice McSorley doesn't say he's competitive — the biggest competitors never self-advertise. Rahne notices that streak every day, especially during the bucket throw. He describes it as an "edge that people don't understand."

"He is not a very happy camper if he's not winning that," Rahne said. "The other quarterbacks know that and they're also very competitive — one of the most, if not the most competitive, rooms in the country. Those five pushups are very important."

So is the relationship with McSorley, who supported Rahne when it came time to decide who would take Moorhead's place as offensive coordinator. There's a tight dynamic there, full of give and take, and it'll be scrutinized more than ever in 2018. Penn State ranked seventh in the FBS with 41.1 points per game last year. Rahne and McSorley are tasked with replicating that.

Franklin doesn't seem worried at all.

"I think probably the story that hasn't been talked about enough is not only did Trace and Ricky Rahne do that in a bowl game," Franklin said. "They did it in a bowl game against a Washington team that had a top-10 defense; one of the best defenses in the country."

Rahne had a good feeling leading up to last year's PlayStation Fiesta Bowl. McSorley texted him constantly during the week while they tweaked their game plan. It showed up against the Huskies. McSorley finished 32 of 41 for 342 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions against the Huskies.

But those aren't the stats he cares about: What were the exact numbers on third down again?

"12 of 12," McSorley said, smiling again.

Every time the Nittany Lions needed a clutch third-down play in that Fiesta Bowl, McSorley made it, over and over and over again. He put the ball where his receivers could get it. There on the field was that confidence.

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"I wanted to say it was great play-calling," Rahne said with a laugh. "But I think we can all agree that when a quarterback goes 12 of 12 that's something that is special. That just speaks to his preparation. I think a bowl game, you get more time to prepare, and that just plays right into his hands.

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McSorley sees that performance as a sign of things to come.

“I think the Fiesta Bowl is a way to kind of look at it and feel like we can definitely bridge the gap," he said. "There is not going to be a big drop-off for us. We still have the same offense."


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Even if the McSorley-Rahne combo works out — and it should — other questions still stand. How will Penn State compete in the Big Ten East race without Barkley, Gesicki, DaeSean Hamilton and others? Can McSorley really carry this team to the College Football Playoff?

These questions are nothing new. Jones recognizes this pattern with each passing summer.

"What was the big complaint after 2016? The big complaint was, 'Yeah, he played well, but a lot of those were 50-50 balls,'" Jones said. "What he did do last year? He upped his completion percentage by nine percentage points and showed his ability to improve as a quarterback to hit that middle-range and long passes. That tells you something when somebody is not satisfied with themselves personally, and he's not."

The Nittany Lions were close to outright consecutive Big Ten East titles last year, but two regular-season losses each of the last two seasons got in the way. Those 2017 losses in particular are still on McSorley's mind.

Ohio State 39, Penn State 38.
Michigan State 27, Penn State 24.


Four points. That's all that separated Penn State from the Big Ten championship game appearance last year — and maybe something more. The oft-told story is that winners remember losses more than wins, but McSorley's outlook veers on that subject.

"I wouldn't say that you remember the losses more than the big wins," he said. "I mean, I remember all the state championship wins in high school. I remember winning the Big Ten championship, and I remember beating Ohio State and winning the Fiesta Bowl. Those stick out.

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The word that comes up most in association with McSorley among teammates and coaches now is "vocal." That role, Barkley's last year, is McSorley's now. If something isn't right in practice, he'll gather the team together and deliver that message — now, to a group of players much younger than him.

When McSorley arrived at Penn State, his classmates were drawn to him. Now, everyone is. He doesn't announce his leadership, either. Franklin wants that to continue.

"I want people to lead the way that is going to fit their personality and style," he said. "I don't want people to try to lead like someone else or be someone else. I have a very in-your-face-and-aggressive positive personality, but I can't expect Trace to lead the way I would lead. I need Trace to lead the way he leads."



The pre-written ink on Penn State for 2018 is dry. Depending on who you ask, that narrative will only strengthen this year's team under McSorley's leadership.

"Not having Saquon is such a big loss because he was such an amazing player and a good leader on the field and off the field," said tackle Ryan Bates. "I don't think that matters a lot with Trace. Obviously everyone misses Saquon, but I don't think us not having Saquon is detrimental to Trace being Trace.

"Trace is still going to be the leader, the competitor, the winner he is. That's just who he is."

Now is McSorley's time to take that spotlight once and for all, to remind his doubters, again, that appearances can be deceiving. The white bandanna, the home run swing, the fun-loving personality: That's all part of his image as the free-wheeling quarterback — the best in college football, and not just because there are fewer options in 2018.

McSorley continues to lead and continues to win. It's the same as when he first arrived on campus in 2014, part of a class determined to change the Penn State narrative.

"He'll always have that special place at Penn State," Jones said of McSorley. "He'll always be able to stand side by side with John Hufnagel, Chuck Fusina, Todd Blackledge, Kerry Collins, Michael Robinson and Daryll Clark. With the younger generation, he'll be the quarterback they remember. He's going to be their guy."

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"Not just for his production and those types of things, but for the timing of it," Franklin said. "Obviously he came to Penn State at a challenging time. We've done a lot of special things in a time period where a lot of people would have thought it would have been impossible."

He'll get a chance to add to that legacy more at the next level, too. The comparisons to Oklahoma's Baker Mayfield, last year's Heisman Trophy winner and the No. 1 pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, have already started. The competitiveness, in particular, stands out.

You can see it during a lift, where Scott says he can hear McSorley jawing with other quarterbacks in his group. You can see it on the basketball court, where he won't let Johnson stop playing until his team wins. And of course, you can see it there on the field.

As his teammates have said so many times in so many ways: That's Trace.

Now, he'll try to lead Penn State somewhere that would silence critics once and for all. All those games — against Millbrook, Georgia, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio State, Michigan State — they'll be remembered by some.

But there's a place where everyone remembers the final score.

That's the College Football Playoff, where McSorley has one final opportunity to lead Penn State this year. It's the next logical step, and it's one he has thought about all summer. Like Rahne said, that plays right into the quarterback's hands.

"For me and my legacy, that's the next step where I think I can lead this team and where I want to take this team," McSorley said. "If I can do that, and we can leave off as a Playoff team in my last year, that's the goal for my last season.

"I want to get this team there, and the legacy will define itself afterward."

In other words, he'll prove his doubters wrong once and for all.
There is a great story about bart star. Smallish guy without any real physical skills that stood out. Coaches loved him but the players were unimpressed. His first game a dt broke through and simply planted Bart, giving him a bloody mouth and chipping a tooth. The players watched as he pealed himself up of the turf wondering of he could keep playing. The dt got in his face with a smart ass remark and Bart suddenly energized, got in his face and said 'F you, you prick'. He then led the drive to a TD and a win. The team never looked back after that.

TM reminds me of Bart Star. Nothing ever jumps out but he has great players around him, he empowers them and makes everyone better. He is just a perfect fit for this team.
 
True book-smart intelligence is what makes a player who has supposed physical limitations overcome and achieve. Trace seems to me to be a very smart kid. Players that are extremely physically gifted but not as smart ultimately don't achieve at the level expected.

Size, strength, and speed are the things that combines measure, but for some reason raw intelligence only gets measured on the stupid Wonderlic test.
 
True book-smart intelligence is what makes a player who has supposed physical limitations overcome and achieve. Trace seems to me to be a very smart kid. Players that are extremely physically gifted but not as smart ultimately don't achieve at the level expected.

Size, strength, and speed are the things that combines measure, but for some reason raw intelligence only gets measured on the stupid Wonderlic test.
Agree. But he also has great poise in times of stress. That can't be taught. He also has great pocket presence and accuracy. He still is not big, strong or exceptionally fast. But he doesn't need to be with this team. He makes everyone else better.
 
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Agree. But he also has great poise in times of stress. That can't be taught. He also has great pocket presence and accuracy. He still is not big, strong or exceptionally fast. But he doesn't need to be with this team. He makes everyone else better.

I think we are way understating his physical skills. He owns all the speed and agility drills (forty, NFL shuttle, etc.) for the QB position per the leader boards in the gym. His times are consistent with most of our DBs (who are super athletic). Trace has the ability to make DBs look foolish at times (look at last year’s Michigan game). A physically average QB can’t do that. Trace also has a much stronger arm than many of us give him credit for. Dilfer is head of Elite 11 and recently watched Trace and a bunch of the other big name QBs in college this year (they were E11 counselors). Dilfer called Trace a stud and said he thought Trace had as much arm talent as Mayfield (possibly more).

I am not saying he is better than Mayfield. But I disagree with the notion that he is not a pretty physically gifted player. There are not many guys who can both move and throw like him. Most good college QBs can maybe do one or the other. He does both.
 
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People who down play Trace's Physical Gifts do so to their own detriment. He's not Lamar Jackson or Denard Robinson running the ball, but he is quick enough to make guys miss and pick up 6-10 yards when he needs them. He has also become more effective with reading the option and making plays with his eyes at the mesh point.

As for arm strength, it's always been more than credible. Where he's improved is mid and short range accuracy. Field vision has come a long way as evidenced by his 11-11 3rd down performance against a top ten UW D in The Fiesta Bowl. The one knock that will always follow him is his height. It's more a next level concern, as there are many college greats who worked around it to major success at this level. Mayfield showing promise early on could help Trace in the eyes of scouts come The 2019 Draft.
 
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