EVANSTON, IL— Penn State football’s 41-13 win at Northwestern Saturday had some concerns.
The team looked sluggish at times and went into halftime tied at 10 as a four-touchdown favorites.
After not trailing or turning the ball over through its first four games, Penn State did the latter on the opening kickoff, when Nicholas Singleton fumbled, which led to the latter, when a Northwestern field goal made it 3-0 early.
Injuries are another concern. Starting left guard JB Nelson was carted off the field in the first quarter. Running back Kaytron Allen exited the game in the second quarter and didn’t return. After the game, coach James Franklin commented on their statues.
“JB is back with us,” Franklin said in his postgame presser, “and Kaytron, I’m not sure. I haven’t gotten the full medical report.”
Vega Ioane stepped in at left guard for Nelson.
Although Penn State only starts five offensive lineman, Franklin considers Nelson and his classmate, right tackle Drew Shelton, as players who get in games enough to be considered starters. Allen is one of Penn State’s best offensive players, having run for 867 yards, 10 touchdowns and a 5.2 yards per carry average. Penn State obviously wants to have Allen ready to go for its next game against UMass Oct. 14, Trey Potts stepped up in Allen’s absence against Northwestern.
Potts, who transferred in from Minnesota before the season, ran for a touchdown and caught another one.
Franklin was pleased with Potts and went out of his way to mention him in his presser.
“When he got opportunities, he maximized them,” Franklin said. “So, it’s great to see him be able to come in and know that we feel like we have three backs that we can win with in this league.
