IOWA CITY, Iowa _ Penn State wasn't supposed to have its throwback game until Indiana visits Beaver Stadium next Saturday.
The Nittany Lions, though, opted to honor their history _ their recent history, anyway _ during a 21-19 victory against Iowa at Kinnick Stadium Saturday night.
As happened so many times last season, the Nittany Lions' offense shook off a sluggish first half and putting up the points needed to turn a hotly contested game into a victory.
This finish was more dramatic than most, though, as Juwan Johnson pulled in a seven-yard touchdown pass from Trace McSorley on the final play of the game.
The Nittany Lions (4-0, 1-0 in the Big Ten) are ranked fourth in the country and won a conference opener against the Hawkeyes for the first time in four tries.
As usual, the offense was led by running back Saquon Barkley, who rushed for 211 yards and caught passes for 94 more.
Penn State trailed, 7-5, at halftime, but reclaimed the lead with scoring drives on its first two possessions of the second half.
Tyler Davis made it 8-7 with a 21-yard field goal 4:18 into the second half, and Barkley scored on an eight-yard touchdown run at 9:44 to pad their advantage.
Troy Apke blocked a 36-yard field goal attempt by Miguel Recinos of Iowa 90 seconds into the fourth quarter to preserve that lead.
Akrum Wadley pulled the Hawkeyes close when a 70-yard catch-and-run about five minutes into the fourth quarter, but Apke broke up Iowa's attempt for a two-point conversion that would have tied the game.
The Nittany Lions got a scare midway through the second period, when Barkley had his legs taken out from under him _ Barkley didn't have the ball at the time _ by defensive end A.J. Epenesa.
Barkley immediately jogged to the sideline, but returned for the next series.
Not all of the injury news was good for Penn State, however. Defensive end Torrence Brown, a redshirt junior, is expected to miss the rest of the season because of a knee injury sustained against Georgia State a week earlier.
Teammate Shareef Miller wore Brown's No. 19 jersey, then paid tribute to him again midway through the second quarter, when he tackled Wadley in the end zone for a safety that gave Penn State a 5-0 lead.
It was the Nittany Lions' second safety of the season.
That play reflected the Nittany Lions' domination of the first half, which showed up everywhere but the scoreboard, where Iowa had a 7-5 advantage after two quarters because of a sequence of events in the final minute.
Hawkeyes middle linebacker Josey Jewell intercepted a McSorley pass and, on the next play, Iowa quarterback Nate Stanley hit wide receiver with a Nick Easley with a 21-yard touchdown pass with 37 seconds left on the clock.
Easley's touchdown marked the first time this season Penn State trailed in a game.
That scoring play accounted for nearly half of the Hawkeyes' first-half yards. The Hawkeyes managed just three first downs _ Penn State had 12 _ and was outgained, 219-54.
What's more, Penn State, which routinely turns up on the low side of time-of-possession stats, had the ball for 19 { minutes, a full nine more than Iowa.
Penn State's control of the opening half began with the coin toss, which it won.
The Nittany Lions opted to receive, presumably with the goal of getting some early points and forcing Iowa to play catch-up, but had its opening drive stall at the Hawkeyes' 39.
Even so, that series set the tone for the first half, as Penn State had superior field position throughout.
It just couldn't take advantage of it.
Aside from Miller's safety, the only points the Nittany Lions could manage came on a 19-yard field goal by Davis with 61 seconds remaining in the opening quarter.
Even that likely felt hollow to Penn State, since it came at the end of a 66-yard drive. Had it gone 67, the Nittany Lions would have been in the end zone.
