Game Balls: These players shined in victory over Wolf Pack

By Sean Fitz

Penn State’s 46-11 win over Nevada to open the season got the Nittany Lions started on a high note ahead of the 2025 season. While James Franklin’s group has plenty to work on coming out of the win, there were plenty of bright spots for the Nittany Lions on Saturday.

Who earned game balls for their performance in the win? Here are our picks.

Offense: Wide Receiver Kyron Hudson 

Penn State’s new cast of wide receivers passed their first test on Saturday against Nevada. As expected, Drew Allar went early and often to transfers Kyron Hudson and Trebor Pena en route to a 22-of-26 day throwing the ball. They looked comfortable and, perhaps most importantly, looked like they’ve done this before. 

Despite a miss on a shot to the end zone in the first quarter, it was clear that Allar and Hudson have developed a strong connection over the last eight months. The final stat line for Hudson was six catches for 89 yards and Allar’s lone touchdown pass of the day. The six catches tied his career high with USC, and the yardage total was six more than he had against LSU last September, his previous career best. 

Hudson was brought in to provide a steady presence for a room in transition. Yes, it’s Nevada, but he looked composed and ready to go in his first real game at Beaver Stadium. He was able to make a tough sideline grab for 14 yards in the third quarter. That’s the type of tougher-than-average grab these guys were brought in to make. Hudson clearly isn’t overwhelming, but he may just be what the Nittany Lions need.

Highs & Lows: Penn State pounds Nevada in season-opening rout

It’s tough to take too much away from a season opener against an overmatched opponent, but it’s a step in the right direction for the Nittany Lions at the position. Pena added a team-high seven catches for 74 yards as well. Penn State made it a point to get the ball into the hands of its outside guys, especially while Allar was in the game. The Nittany Lions’ tight ends still combined for six catches, but most came with Ethan Grunkemeyer on the field late. That’s a sign of what the Nittany Lions (1) want to do to be more diverse with its scheme and (2) need to work on to get where they need to be offensively. 

Defense: Penn State DE Dani Dennis-Sutton

To get it out of the way early, yes, Penn State’s Dani Dennis-Sutton should have been on another level than visiting Nevada. Having said that, he was… and maybe then some. The senior pass rusher was clearly the game’s standout on Saturday afternoon. He slimmed down this offseason and came back hoping to give Penn State its third-straight first-round pick in the NFL Draft next spring. 

Saturday was a good step in that direction. 

In nearly three quarters of work, Dennis-Sutton popped in a big way. He started by violently punching the ball loose from Nevada ballcarrier Ky Woods on the Wolfpack’s first drive of the game. AJ Harris hopped on the loose ball for the season’s first takeaway. Dennis-Sutton would force his second fumble in the third quarter, stripping Herschel Turner on a big tackle for loss. 

He was out of the game late in the third quarter, but unofficially finished with five tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, two forced fumbles, a sack, a quarterback hurry and a pass breakup. He also delivered the game’s biggest hit to Turner early in the game. 

Simply put, Dennis-Sutton should have dominated the competition, and very much did so. It wasn’t necessarily about the numbers, but how he looked doing it. Dennis-Sutton’s season mission objectives remain open with the biggest games on the schedule down the road, but there won’t be many college tackles that will be able to handle the player we saw on Saturday. 

Special Teams: Penn State kicker Ryan Barker

Nittany Lions fans probably saw too much of returning kicker Ryan Barker on Saturday. That wasn’t his fault, however, as the offense stalled a few times more than their liking on the day. Regardless, Barker finished every drive he was asked to cap by going 4-for-4 on field goals on Saturday. His longest was a 39-yarder in the third quarter. 

Penn State needs to finish with touchdowns, especially against Nevada, but it is always good to get live reps in the stadium in front of a pretty full Beaver Stadium. Barker missed part of camp with a tweak, but looked good on Saturday when called upon. True freshman Matthew Parker took over for Barker when the game got out of hand in the fourth quarter, seeing his first career action. 

It’s worth adding that Penn State returned just two kicks on the day, with King Mack showing some skills with a 73-yard run back in the second quarter. The ensuing drive, unfortunately, was capped with a 28-yard field goal by Barker.