As expected, Saturday’s Penn State-Rutgers game wasn’t much of a game.
Rutgers, a three-touchdown underdog, had leads of 3-0 and 10-7 in the first quarter but got out-scored 41-0 the rest of the way, and Penn State cruised to a 55-10 win.
Rutgers (4-7, 1-7) drew first blood on a 42-yard field goal by Jude McAtamney with 8:06 left in the first quarter.
Penn State (9-2, 6-2) responded immediately with a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Nick Singleton, the first special teams TD of the freshman running back’s career.
It was a big day for Penn State’s running game. Kaytron Allen had 117 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries. Singleton had 62 on nine carries.
The visitors only had a little time to get comfortable. On the ensuing kickoff, Rutgers’ Aron Cruickshank ran 53 yards to Penn State’s 21. Rutgers took advantage four plays later on a 4-yard pass from Gavin Wimsatt to Shameen Jones.
Rutgers didn’t score again all day. Penn State re-took the
1️⃣0️⃣0️⃣ YARD KICK RETURN TO THE HOUSE.@NickSingletonn x @PennStateFball pic.twitter.com/KdCG1S3yBq
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) November 19, 2022
lead in an unusual fashion later in the quarter. Marquis Wilson and Dom DeLuca combined to force Rutgers’ Johnny Langan to fumble, and linebacker Kobe King was there to pick it up and run it in for a 13-yard score.
A little scoop and score action. 🤌@KobekingCTFB x @PennStateFball pic.twitter.com/kseVtyTnUv
— Penn State On BTN (@PennStateOnBTN) November 19, 2022
Penn State added to its lead with two touchdowns in the second quarter. A Johnny Dixon interception set Penn State up at the Rutgers 30, and five plays later, Sean Clifford hit Tyler Warren for a 10-yard score to put Penn State ahead by double-digits. Clifford scored with his legs on a 14-yard run that virtually put the game to bed with 1:03 left in the second quarter.
If the game wasn’t over then, it was on the first possession of the second half. Curtis Jacobs forced a fumble that Ji’Ayir Brown scooped and ran in for a 75-yard score.
Penn State is now 31-2 against Rutgers. Rutger’s wins over Penn State took place in 1918 and 1988.
