University Park— Penn State desperately needed a strong performance Saturday afternoon against Northwestern and it was nowhere to be found.
PSU lost 22-21 to the Wildcats at Beaver Stadium.
Whatever energy was present when Dani Dennis-Sutton blocked a punt on Northwestern’s first drive disappeared once Drew Allar threw an interception in the end zone on Penn State’s first drive.
From there it was a back and forth contest that Penn State, on paper, should have had no business being on the wrong side of.
But that’s why the game is played on the field.
Passing Game???
If you were looking for the passing game Saturday afternoon, so too is Penn State. 67 of Allar’s 137 yards came on the longest play of the season, a catch and run by Devonte Ross.
Aside from that, any semblance of a passing game could be found in better form in the parking lots outside the stadium.
Ross was the bright spot with seven targets and seven receptions for 115 yards.
RB1
For most of James Franklin’s tenure he has deployed a two-back system at running back. This year is no different despite Kaytron Allen seemingly being the bertter of the two running backs between he and Nicholas Singleton.
Allen averaged 5.6 yards per carry against the Wildcats and was averaging 6.9 yards per carry into the second quarter including a touchdown before Singleton took over for the other two series in the quarter.
Following the half, Allen handled the entirety of the running back carries.
For the Brand
It is never truly a positive thing when the punter is the best player on the field as it means the offense was less than stellar. Enter Gabe Nwosu who was superb in the punting game.
Nwosu had two punts inside the 20-yard line including one at the two. He accumulated 124 yards on three punts.
