Penn State squeezes out 26-23 victory in 3 OTs

MIAMI -- Penn State kicker Kevin Kelly avenged an earlier miss when he connected on a field goal in the third overtime period Tuesday night as the Nittany Lions defeated Florida State 26-23 in the Orange Bowl.

Kelly missed a 29-yard field goal wide left with 35 seconds left in regulation, and the Nittany Lions went into overtime tied at 16.

Gary Cismesia missed an extra point in the first half for Florida State, but connected on a 48-yard field goal with 4:08 remaining to tie the game at 16.

It was the second overtime game in Orange Bowl history. Michigan beat Alabama 35-34 here six years ago.

Penn State took a 16-13 lead with 13:36 left, when Florida State quarterback Drew Weatherford was called for intentional grounding in his own end zone -- giving the Nittany Lions a safety.

And the Seminoles then dodged a huge bullet with about nine minutes left, when Penn State quarterback Michael Robinson never got his hands on a snap from center and Florida State recovered at its own 5-yard line -- setting up the drive where Cismesia tied the game.

Robinson found Ethan Kilmer with a 24-yard touchdown pass six seconds before halftime, and Penn State entered the fourth quarter with a 14-13 lead.

Kilmer's leaping catch capped a quick two-play, 40-yard drive that took only 11 seconds -- and wrested momentum away from the Seminoles, who scored two touchdowns within an 80-second span earlier in the quarter to take a short-lived 13-7 lead.

Willie Reid returned a punt 87 yards for a touchdown for Florida State's first touchdown with 4:09 left in the half, and Lorenzo Booker caught a 57-yard screen pass from Drew Weatherford on the Seminoles' next play from scrimmage to give his team its first lead.

There was plenty of offense shortly before halftime, with the teams combining to score 20 points in the final 4:09 before the break.

But defenses controlled the third quarter. Neither team managed a first down for the first 13:48 of the period, and the one Penn State got to break that drought came when Florida State was flagged for pass interference.