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STATE COLLEGE, Pennsylvania (Ticker) -- Two years ago, Minnesota gave Penn State a terrible scare. Today, the ball bounced right and they finished the job. Freshman Dan Nystrom kicked a 32-yard field goal on the final play as Minnesota stunned second-ranked Penn State, 24-23, and handed the national championship hopes of the Nittany Lions a devastating blow. Arland Bruce caught a deflected pass from Billy Cockerham at the Penn State 13-yard line on 4th-and-18 to set up the winning kick by Nystrom, who missed an extra point after the Gophers' first touchdown. "I was just glad the offense gave me a chance to do it," Nystrom said. The loss snapped an 11-game winning streak for Penn State (9-1, 5-1 Big Ten), the second-longest active run in the nation, and came in Joe Paterno's 400th game as coach. The Gophers made it a memorable one for the wrong reasons, likely costing him Paterno a chance at his third national title. "There's a lot of football left to be played. I've been here before," Paterno said. "I felt sorry for the kids. I feel sorry for the seniors, because they didn't get to do what they wanted to do. But they've still had a great season." Two seasons ago, Minnesota led at Happy Valley late in the game before Penn State recovered a fumble by Thomas Hamner en route to a 16-15 victory. It appeared the Gophers (6-3, 3-3 Big Ten) were headed for yet another close defeat today before they rallied for their biggest win in three seasons under coach Glen Mason and first win in five tries against Penn State. Close games are nothing new to the Gophers, whose three losses this season have come by an average of 3.7 points. Minnesota clinched its first winning season since 1987 and the six wins allow the Gophers to go to a bowl game for the first time since 1986, when they went to the Liberty Bowl. "We came here two years ago, we should have won the football game. We didn't," Mason said. "I told them at halftime, we were playing hard, we could have gotten Wisconsin in overtime, we should have beaten Ohio State. Good things will start to happen for us." It was the first win for Minnesota against a ranked team since it defeated No. 23 Syracuse on September 21, 1996, and its first against a ranked team on the road since October 23, 1993 against No. 15 Wisconsin. "This program went from a losing program to a winning program in one game," Hamner said. "We beat a great team today. I'm not surprised, but again, I'm happy." Penn State had a 12-game home winning strak snapped, losing here for the first time since a 34-8 setback to Michigan in 1997. For redemption, Hamner caught a 49-yard touchdown pass from Cockerham to give the Gophers a 21-20 lead with 11:25 left. The missed extra point earlier in the game forced the Gophers to go for a two-point conversion that failed. The Nittany Lions regained the lead on a 44-yard field goal by Travis Forney with 9:12 remaining. Minnesota moved into position for the winning score on a 46-yard pass from Cockerham to Ron Johnson that put the ball at the Penn State 34. A sack by LaVar Arrington appeared to stall the drive before Cockerham lofted a pass that was deflected by Johnson and two defenders before Bruce made a diving catch. Hamner was the workhorse for the Gophers, rushing 38 times for 96 yards, falling short of 100 yards for the first time in six games. The versatile Cockerham completed 14-of-24 passes for 277 yards and two touchdowns and carried 12 times for 44 yards and a score. The Gophers overcame a strong performance from Penn State's Eric McCoo, who rushed 16 times for 107 yards. "Obviously someone (else) needs to lose," McCoo said of the Lions' title hopes. "We need to go out and beat Michigan State and go to a bowl game." Quarterback Kevin Thompson struggled, completing just 12-of-27 passes for 158 yards. Rashard Casey completed 2-of-3 passes and Forney kicked three field goals. The Nittany Lions started quickly, marching 67 yards on their first possession and capping the drive with a five-yard TD run by Mike Cerimile. "It is a nightmare," Cerimile said. "You expect to wake up at any second and it will all disappear. Reality is we lost and we must move on." Nystrom kicked a 27-yard field goal late in the first quarter and the Gophers took a 9-7 lead when Johnson made a leaping catch in the end zone on a 25-yard pass from Cockerham. Penn State had a 14-9 halftime lead on a 17-yard slant pass from Thompson to Bryant Johnson late in the second quarter. Forney increased the lead to 17-9 on a 20-yard field goal before the Gophers responded with a 49-yard pass from Cockerham to Alex Haas that set up a 3-yard TD run by Cockerham. Against forced to go for two, the Gophers failed. A 44-yard field goal by Forney made it 20-15 before Cockerham found Hamner on the catch-and-run score down the left sideline. Arrington had a career-high 15 tackles.
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