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Everything that could go wrong did for Penn State last week at Northwestern, whether it be on offense or defense.
While the offense has had its struggles all season, the Lions' defense had its first rough patch of the season for a full game. The final minutes of Wisconsin was also a meltdown after the Lions played well for three-plus quarters.
Edge rusher Yvan Kemajou had four total tackles vs. the Badgers-- two solo and two assisted. He now has 11 total for the season, including two for a loss, plus a sack.
"I think we always need to rush more together and just really finish at the quarterback," Kemajou said. "We've been getting good rushes and good pressures, but we really need to finish and get the sacks."
One of the question marks so far has been the team's pass rush.
Through five games, the Lions have seven total sacks, including just one on Friday against the Wildcats and quarterback Aidan Chiles. Linebacker Tony Rojas picked up the lone sack of the day against Chiles, which only needed to throw 14 times in the game.
Despite the low numbers and not lighting up the stat sheet in the passing game, it hasn't exactly been a worry.
"I still think that group has grown," Nits coach Matt Campbell said of the team's pass rush. "I feel it's like, what area has made the best growth? It's probably been the ability to watch that group grow forward."
In Kemajou's case, defensive coordinator D'Anton Lynn said it's the sophomore's consistency that needs to grow.
"Since he's been here, he's made plays," Lynn said. "At first it was kind of spotty. He'd make flash plays, and then you wouldn't see him for a little bit, then he'd make a play. I think the more he's been in this system, the more consistent he's been."
Kemajou described his game by mixing things up, being versatile by being able to beat offensive tackles through speed and with power.
"I've always been the type of guy who wants to get around you with speed work off the edge, but will go to the bull and power when need be," Kemajou said.
While there needs to be more improvement in the pass rush, the run defense had done pretty well up to last week.
The Lions were giving up an average of 113.3 rushing yards per game going into the Northwestern game, but that number ballooned up to 173.2 yards per game after the Wildcats' effort of 413 yards on the ground.
"I think we've shown we can stop the run, but it's about doing it consistently," Lynn said. "We've shown we can do it, but can you do it on every down and every week?"
Kemajou was a four-star prospect out of high school in Maryland when he joined the team in 2025 as a true freshman. He played in 11 games last year, racking up 13 tackles, five TFLs, and 1.5 sacks.
With eight games left for a defense that is hoping to only improve as the year progresses, it's all about embracing the growing pains.
"Each game there's going to be things we do well," Lynn said. "There's going to be things we need to improve on. But as a team we have to grow each week."