STATE COLLEGE, PA. Nittany Lions snap losing streak with 52-7 win

Joe Paterno's crew routed Indiana for their first Big Ten win.
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) -- Penn State coach Joe Paterno was worried when his team allowed Indiana to drive 80 yards for a touchdown on its first possession. But after the third quarter, the concern was gone.
The Nittany Lions (3-8, 1-6 Big Ten) scored 52 unanswered points -- 31 of them in the third quarter -- to rout Indiana 52-7 Saturday. It was Penn State's first Big Ten win this season and snapped a six-game losing streak, the school's longest since losing seven straight in 1931.
Early on, it looked like the Hoosiers (2-9, 1-6) might jump on Penn State early, like so many others have done this season. Indiana went up 7-0 on LoVecchio's 12-yard pass to Glenn Johnson in the back of the end zone, and BenJarvus Green-Ellis had no trouble rushing against the Penn State defense.
"It made me nervous. It made me nervous," Paterno said. "But the coaches and the kids, they made some adjustments. We settled down and we played better."
Led 21-7 at halftime
Did they ever. By halftime, Penn State was up 21-7, and the game was a rout even before Penn State scored three touchdowns in the last 3:32 of the third quarter.
Indiana, with the worst defense in the Big Ten, couldn't stop Penn State on play action, leaving receivers wide open. The Nittany Lions had five receptions for 30 yards or more.
Zack Mills completed 12-of-19 passes for 173 yards and 3 touchdowns, and Michael Robinson completed 2-of-3 for 87 and another touchdown. Tony Johnson scored on all three of his catches, and Maurice Humphrey had five catches for 121 yards and a touchdown.
"This is something we saw during the week that we'd have a lot of chances to do," Mills said.
Broke game open
But the stake in the heart came in the third quarter, starting with Robbie Gould's field goal. Andrew Guman's 8-yard return of a blocked punt gave Penn State a 31-7 lead early in the third. Robinson's 10-yard run made it 38-7 with 3:32 remaining. Robinson found Tony Johnson on play action for a 30-yard score, and Paul Posluszny intercepted Matt LoVecchio's pass and returned it 15 yards to make it 52-7 with 18 seconds to go in the quarter.
"The pick for a touchdown, the blocked punt for a touchdown -- that interrupts the flow of the game, and they get two extra scores," Indiana coach Gerry DiNardo said. "We're better than we looked the second half of the game."
Green-Ellis had 203 yards on 42 carries for Indiana, which has never beaten Penn State in nine tries.
First win since September
The Nittany Lions won for the first time since Sept. 20, when they beat Kent State 32-10.
Mills found Humphrey on a 33-yard pass across the middle, the only score of the second quarter, to make it 21-7.
Tony Johnson made his second touchdown catch late in the first quarter, a 5-yarder across the middle from Mills that gave Penn State a 14-7 lead. Penn State set up the score with a trick play, splitting Mills wide and moving Robinson under center for a 57-yard pass over the middle to tight end Mike Lukac.
Tony Johnson's first touchdown catch, a 12-yarder from Mills, tied the game 7-7. Mills had a 51-yarder to Humphrey to set up the score.