Kaytron Allen (13) led a Penn State run game that racked up 266 yards last week against Washington. Allen could be in line for another big workload as Nick Singleton missed the end of the Huskies game with an injury. Singleton is expected to be with the team at Purdue but his role could possibly be limited as a precaution.
Barry Reeger | AP photo
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Earlier this week, Penn State season ticket holders got emails to begin the process of reserving seats for a potential College Football Playoff game at Beaver Stadium in December.
It’s a necessary bit of planning with the Nittany Lions sitting at 8-1 and No. 4 in the latest CFP committee rankings, which would land them the No. 6 seed and a home game in the expanded 12-team bracket.
That ticketing process is entirely separate from anything that Lions coaches and players are thinking about this week. But as they get closer to earning the program’s first playoff berth, the psychology of the situation becomes one of their biggest challenges.
That’s especially true this weekend as Penn State hits the road to take on Big Ten basement-dweller Purdue, a team on an eight-game losing streak that hasn’t beaten an FBS opponent in nearly a full year.
The easiest way to ward off any upset vibes? Control the line of scrimmage and run the ball.
After a month’s worth of underwhelming rushing performances, Penn State managed to get things back on track last week as they finished with 266 and four touchdowns on the ground against Washington.
There’s an opportunity to keep that momentum going against a Purdue defense that is allowing just a hair under 200 rushing yards per game, ranking No. 118 in the country.
The gameplan could be slightly affected by the availability of Nick Singleton, who exited last week’s game after one carry in the second half with an undisclosed injury.
Singleton was back at practice as normal in the portion open to the media on Wednesday.
“Confident he’ll be ready to go,” coach James Franklin said afterward. “But as you guys know, medical decisions are out of my league. But, we’re confident.”
Singleton showed some of the trademark burst that had been missing since he was first injured against Illinois in late September, an apparent lower body issue that led to him sitting out a week later against UCLA. He even opened the second half vs. the Huskies with a 97-yard kickoff return but the touchdown was wiped out by a holding penalty.
Kaytron Allen finished with 98 yards and a score on 20 carries in the game.
“I think you guys know Nick’s had some things lingering on and off kind of throughout the year and has battled through them,” Franklin said. “Kaytron is a workhorse. And they complement each other really well. Even on the kickoff return it was a shame that that got called back. And I think it was a legitimate call.”
Penn State also got a look at the future last week as true freshman Corey Smith saw his first snaps of his college career and made a quick impact.
With Singleton out and Allen needing a breather, Smith checked in and ran for 8 yards and a first down to set up an Allen touchdown in the fourth quarter.
He then took his second carry 78 yards and finished the night with 95 on the ground.
Smith’s opportunity came with Singleton, Cam Wallace and Quinton Martin all dealing with varying levels of injuries. Wallace is out for the season and Martin recently returned to practice after missing time.
“We had two young backs that I think you guys knew we were excited about,” Franklin said. “And I think early on there was a lot of talk about Quinton, and deservedly so. But I think in the Lasch Building, there was also a lot of excitement about Corey, a different style back than probably the other three. But it was great to see him get in there. And the long run, it’s probably what everybody is excited about, although he took hell for it in the team meeting yesterday and with his teammates” because he got caught from behind at the end.
“The run that was probably most impressive to us is his first run, his first play as a college football player. The patience he showed, his ability and a little bit of a dirty read to get vertical. He’s still got to put on some size and do a great job in the weight room, but he stuck it up in there and had a really, really efficient run. So that’s good.
“Those guys are being developed. I think we have talent at that position. Think they’re holding up well. I think both Nick and Kaytron are really good complementary pieces to each other. And we’re going to need all of them as this season continues.”
THREE AND OUT
DeLUCA’S ROLE GROWS
For the first time since getting injured against Kent State in September, linebacker Dominic DeLuca was able to practice without a cast on his right hand this week.
The former Wyoming Area standout was forced to miss Penn State’s win over Illinois but was able to return the next week against UCLA sporting a black cast that had gotten less bulky in recent weeks.
DeLuca said earlier this month that it created some challenges for him, especially for his major role on special teams as he serves as a captain for the unit.
“This isn’t a big secret, but he had a cast on his hand early on, where I think he only had maybe his thumb exposed, and it’s hard to be the type of special teams player he is with not having a hand,” Franklin said. “And then, obviously, defensively, you’re not able to wrap with that hand. So as that hand healed and he got more fingers available to him, and got more comfortable, then he has more confidence, and we have more confidence in him being able to do the things he did before the issue. So he’s back to full-go now, and that’s why you see his rep count increasing.
“Very, very valuable guy for us. Extremely smart, could probably play all three of the linebacker positions, could easily be a four-unit starter for us on special teams, which is what he’s been up to this point of his career. But with the value that he provides at linebacker, and a little bit of the lack of depth … there, we started to limit someof his roles on special teams because of that.”
TOUGH SEASON
Purdue hasn’t managed to stop anyone outside of the season-opener against FCS Indiana State, a 49-0 win.
Since then, the Boilermakers have gone 0-8 against FBS squads, getting outscored 340-113, capped off by last week’s 45-0 loss to Ohio State. They fired offensive coordinator Graham Harrell just four games into the season.
Outside of a frantic second half against Illinois in which the Boilers staged a furious rally to force overtime before losing 50-49, there haven’t been many bright spots.
“I think obviously this season has not gone the way any of us would have envisioned or wanted it to,” Purdue coach Ryan Walters said. “But regardless of the outcomes on Saturday, all of those guys to a man continue to show up, put in the work, prepare the right way and then go compete and play hard on Saturdays.”
Walters has had a tough time picking up the pieces after his predecessor, Jeff Brohm, left to lead his alma mater at Louisville. Brohm had the Boilers on an upswing, and indeed the Lions’ last trip to West Lafayette looked far more daunting for the 2022 season-opener.
Penn State was just a 3.5-point favorite for that game, played on a Thursday night in front of a rowdy crowd, and the Lions needed a touchdown in the final minute to pull out a 35-31 win.
Brohm left after that season and Walters has been at the helm for the past two seasons after a successful stint as Illinois’ defensive coordinator. Purdue has gone just 5-16 under Walters and the Boilers are four-touchdown underdogs on Saturday.
Walters’ last meeting against Penn State, however, was a game the Lions would like to forget. Walters was the architect of the Illini defense that held the Lion to just 18 points in a record-setting nine overtimes as Illinois won at Beaver Stadium in 2021.
QUARTERBACK SPOTLIGHT
Penn State felt compelled to start an ailing Sean Clifford at quarterback in that game in part because the backup at the time, Ta’Quan Roberson struggled badly when he had to replace Clifford at Iowa.
Three years later, the Lions are in a much better spot in the quarterback room with Drew Allar and Beau Pribula both regularly taking snaps. When Allar was hurt last month at Wisconsin, Pribula was able to take over and rally the Lions to a road win.
For Allar, Saturday is a return to the site of his first college action, as he took over briefly to start the second half for Clifford in the 2022 contest at Ross-Ade Stadium.
Quarterbacks coach Danny O’Brien has seen plenty of growth for Allar since that initial cameo.
“The biggest thing, having a year under his belt and being the starter here, is he’s feeling his presence on the field,” O’Brien said. “Our mantra is being the thermostat on the team. Through the first three quarters of the season he’s done a really good job of that. It’s been fun to watch his evolution there.”
O’Brien was pleased to see Allar bounce back from a loss to Ohio State with a solid performance last week against Washington.
“I think it’s just his mental toughness … how he’s responded to the times of adversity and being able to snap back and keep rolling,” O’Brien said. “There are going to be times in every game where things don’t go as planned. How we respond defines us. He’s been awesome with that. Moving forward, learning from it, and getting back in the saddle, and you saw that last week.”
Purdue, meanwhile, will likely start Texas transfer Hudson Card. The more mobile backup, Ryan Browne, will likely see the field at some point, whether it’s part of a specific package like the Lions use Pribula or for an extended drive or two.
“We’ll keep those decisions in house, but yeah, if I was Penn State, I would be preparing for both,” Walters said.