Whew! Can we do that every week? Penn State improved to 2-0 after a 63-7 thrashing of Delaware on Saturday.
Yesterday’s game will likely be the least stressful one all season. While there was plenty of scoring, and thus lots of happiness, I still came away with several emerging themes. Let’s get to those first before Stella Lion and Game Moments!
Methodical 🏈
Check this out.
Number of offensive plays on scoring drives from Penn State:
13 plays, 60 yards
9 plays, 37 yards
9 plays, 75 yards
9 plays, 73 yards
6 plays, 49 yards
10 plays, 74 yards
5 plays, 31 yards
8 plays, 71 yards
^ The last two offensive drives were with backups in the game.
Holy cow! Talk about methodical. Penn State averaged more than 8.5 plays per possession!
Delaware played a safety-heavy defensive unit most of the game. Taking deep shots against that type of defense was non-logical. So it was great to see Drew Allar, and later Beau Pribula & Co., take what the defense gave them. Not only that, but we got to see what makes Allar special because he executed beautiful passes all over the field. I talked last week about Allar’s impressive vision. Yesterday’s game showcased his accuracy and arm strength.
I counted only two punts from Penn State yesterday. They were cashing in on just about every opportunity - including going 8 for 8 from the red zone. So the efficiency was great, too.
And we can’t forget the one defensive score. After dropping a potential interception earlier in the game, former walk-on linebacker Dom DeLuca took an errant throw 26 yards to the house for a Pick-6 that electrified the crowd.
All in all, a terrific showing against a supremely inferior opponent is exactly the takeaway we wanted from this game.
Lack of Discipline 🟨
With the good, there will always be bad. In last week’s presser, James Franklin talked about how, if they want to be elite, the team has to be able to improve without losing. They have to find those marginal areas and make improvements while continuing to win games.
To me, it’s safe to think that one focus this week will be in regard to penalties. Yesterday, Penn State committed seven penalties which cost them 55 yards. One of those penalties came early in the game on special teams — offsides — and marked the third special teams penalty of the young season. Franklin was irate. The result of yesterday’s penalty was a first down for Delaware when they were ready to punt the ball back to Penn State.
Against Delaware, that’s a play that likely barely registers in most people’s minds. Especially because it didn’t lead to Delaware scoring. But against B1G competition? Being undisciplined can haunt the team just as much as missing a field goal can.
The positive of the two concerns I’ve addressed so far? They are fixable. So I expect Penn State to play more focused next week and do all they can to avoid chaos on the road.
The Field Goal Unit 🥅
We didn’t get much clarity on what went on the past week with this unit because Penn State didn’t take any field goal attempts. I mentioned earlier that they were 8 for 8 from the red zone. So they were consistently cashing in on six points rather than having to attempt a shot for three.
While that’s all good, it would have been nice to see one, if not both, field goal kickers in low-leverage situations. Just to see where their heads may be at. So for another week, we’ll be left to ponder this potential Achilles heel, and only have data from open practice sessions during the week and Saturday’s pre-game snaps.
Stella Lion 🦁
Stella gives her thoughts on the Delaware game while looking ahead to the Illinois matchup.
Game Chat 📱
Penn State heads to Illinois to open B1G play on Saturday, September 16, at 12 p.m. ET. Expect the chat thread to open right around kickoff!
Game Moments 🏈
Q1
9:30: From the first time he took a snap last season, Kaytron Allen’s vision has been off-the-charts good. This season, we’re beginning to see his nimbleness, too, and he showcased that during a nifty tuddy run that was called back due to one of those aforementioned penalties. Still, while Allen will never be the homerun runner Nicholas Singelton is, if he can do more of what he does on this run, he’ll continue to be a major threat — the thunder to Singleton’s lightening as was mentioned so often during yesterday’s Peacock telecast. PSU 0 - UD 0
8:10: Jaylen Reed anchored the defense with a 7-yard sack of Deleware starter Ryan O’Connor. It was nice to see this defensive series play out right after the early score from Penn State. A sign of good things to come. PSU 7 - UD 0
2:20: Allen got the rock back at the goalline and powered his way into the endzone for a tuddy. With great nimbleness comes great strength! And more great vision and patience. PSU 14 - UD 0
1:16: The biggest black eye of the day on defense came on this 66-yard tuddy run by Deleware’s Marcus Yarns. The entire defense seemed out of position, and once Yarns gashed through the second level, he easily zoomed away from the desperate trio of Penn State defenders. The run defense has concerned at multiple points so far, but again, this is a fixable area and I’d expect we’ll see some changes during next week’s game. PSU 14 - UD 7
Q2
13:46: A flee-flicker started by Allar and Singleton turned into an arm strength and accuracy showcase for Allar. Allar stayed in the pocket toward the short side of the field before delivering a rocket pass to KeAndre Lambert-Smith that was hauled in on the opposite side of the numbers. The gain for KLS was only nineteen yards, but it moved the chains, and showcased Allar’s ability, again, to take what the defense was giving him rather than force a long pass downfield just to show off his big arm. PSU 14 - UD 7
5:08: Like last week, Allar was again able to throw precise passes while on the run. Allar was flushed out of the packet on this play, rolled to his right, kept his eyes downfield, and delivered a dart to Dante Cephas that set up another scoring drive for Penn State. PSU 21 - UD 7
00:24: This was a simple slant and dump over the middle from Allar to Tyler Warren. But it was nice to see the tight end unit more involved this week on pass catches. This tuddy catch matched the total number of receptions Penn State tight ends had all of last week. PSU 35 - UD 7
Q3
9:48: The defense created its first turnover of the season. Keaton Ellis stripped the ball from Yarns and it was recovered by Kevin Winston. Great execution all around. PSU 42 - UD 7
7:20: Pribula came into the game for Allar and used his legs to find the endzone. I still don’t know exactly how Pribula will be used in higher-leverage game situations, but we do know the dude can run. PSU 49 - UD 7
2:51: DeLuca was all over this errant throw Delaware’s Zach Marker. It was an easy pick followed up by a nice run back and a juke at the end! PSU 56 - UD 7
Q4
7:40: Pribula’s first career passing touchdown, a 5-yarder to the emerging Omari Evans, capped the scoring on Saturday for the Nittany Lions. PSU 63 - UD 7
FINAL: PSU 63 - UD 7
UP NEXT: Saturday, September 16, at 12 p.m. ET at Illinois from the University of Illinois Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois.