Click here to subscribe today or Login.
Marcus Allen’s eyes lit up. Penn State’s flamboyant safety knew he had racked up a head-turning 22 tackles on Saturday against Minnesota.
But he didn’t know it was the most by a Nittany Lions player in more than a decade and fourth most in school history.
“Is it?” Allen beamed. “That’s just a blessing from God and I want to thank the man upstairs for that.
“I played with a lot of energy and will to win. I really wanted to win. … For me, I play emotional and try to calm it down. But I always have a lot of passion.”
The last time a Penn State player had 22 tackles was All-American linebacker Paul Posluszny in 2005 at Northwestern.
No player for any Big Ten team at any position had that many stops since Wisconsin’s Mike Taylor in 2011.
And through five weeks of this season, only New Mexico State’s Rodney Butler (24) has had more tackles in a single game across the country.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever heard of that,” said Lions coach James Franklin, who has found himself saying that a lot recently given the absurd chain of injuries that has hit his linebackers.
It’s because of all of those issues that Allen’s big statistical day was possible.
Facing a run-first Minnesota offense, the Lions frequently stacked the box, bringing Allen down from the defensive backfield and level with the linebackers, with a linebacker occasionally moving up for a five-man front.
Regardless of where he lined up, he was in on the play.
“I feel great, I’m not sore,” Allen said with a laugh. “I’ll probably feel it tomorrow though.”
Marked man
Safe to say that opposing teams have seen those Joey Julius highlights on SportsCenter.
Penn State’s kickoff specialist is officially a marked man after two laying-down-the-law hits on return men against Kent State and Michigan.
Minnesota linebacker Jaylen Waters appeared to have the responsibility of marking Julius on Saturday, ultimately getting tossed for his efforts. On a third-quarter touchback after Penn State had taken its first lead of the day, Waters went up high to smack the unsuspecting kicker, earning a 15-yard flag and an ejection.
“When I saw Joe Julius get hit, the whole stadium erupted. The whole sideline erupted,” guard Ryan Bates said. “No one comes in our stadium, our home, and disrespects us like that. That kinda put the final nail in the coffin for them. They did it themselves.”
On an earlier kickoff, Waters had wrestled Julius to the ground and made sure he stayed there, pinning him to the grass.
The latter hit prompted players from both sidelines to begin to spill onto the field. Franklin quickly followed, trying to corral his guys back out of the fray before things escalated.
“I think because Joey Julius has been such a factor in getting down and making tackles that people are treating him differently,” Franklin said. “I think that’s a credit to Joey and his toughness.
“I do think that play fired everybody up. … I’m glad Joey’s OK and I’m also impressed that he’s built a reputation that you better deal with our kicker or he’ll get down there and make tackles.”
After initially declining to answer a question about the play, Minnesota coach Tracy Claeys opened up at the end of his post-game press conference and admonished his player.
“I will handle the situation,” Claeys said. “Nobody has more pride and care about the game of football than me. I care about protecting the game, and I don’t believe in that crap.
“But I will take care of it, so anybody who thinks we coach that does not know us. This is a great game. It’s helped a hell of a lot of people. You’re also dealing with kids that are doing things, and there are consequences for those decisions.”
Up next
Penn State’s battered linebacker corps has one more big challenge before reaching a badly needed off week.
Maryland comes to Happy Valley next week for Homecoming sporting a 4-0 record and an option-based offense that will put inexperienced defenders to the test.
Kickoff will be at noon with Big Ten Network carrying the broadcast.
The Terrapins opened Big Ten play on Saturday by hammering cellar-dweller Purdue 50-7 in College Park. Maryland out-rushed the Boilermakers by a flabbergasting 400-10 mark while averaging 8.7 yards per carry.
It’s an uplifting start for the Terps under first-year coach D.J. Durkin, who was hired last winter after serving as Jim Harbaugh’s defensive coordinator for one year at Michigan.
The tricky part about evaluating the Terps is that their four wins have come against FCS Howard, Florida International and Central Florida before Purdue — teams with a combined record of 7-12.
