Penn State-Rutgers Takeaways: Thoughts on the offense, QB situation, more

By Greg Pickel

Penn State won its 17th consecutive game over Rutgers on Saturday. This year, it knocked out the Scarlet Knights 27-6 at Beaver Stadium. Here are our initial takeaways from the Lions’ ninth win of the season.

What is the status of Drew Allar?

This is the question Penn State fans will wanted answered first after the game. The second-year Nittany Lion and first-year starting quarterback collided with Rutgers defender Flip Dixon after an 8-yard run early in the third quarter. He was slow to get up. Then, he threw one incomplete pass before exiting the game and heading to the injury tent. He reappeared a short while later struggling to raise his right arm and favoring his right shoulder. He never returned to the game. Will he back on the field this season? Time will tell. He looked to be in some discomfort on the sideline.

James Franklin told reporters afterward that he was hoping to have Allar back soon, but in keeping with his policy, he declined to discuss the specifics of the quarterback’s injury.

“I’m not going to get into medical stuff,” he said. “It would not be appropriate for Drew, for his family. I don’t see this being significant, but we will see.”

The Lions’ offense did enough to win

Penn State was not exactly pretty on offense for most of this game. But, it did enough to win with interim co-offensive coordinators Ja’Juan Seider and Ty Howle at the controls. Beau Pribula replaced Allar and provided a spark with his legs, as expected. The Lions scored in three of four quarters en route to a victory. The sequencing of the play calls seemed better this week. Third downs were not as problematic as they were in some other games this year. And Kaytron Allen shined in a leading role. We want to see more of that moving forward.

It’s worth noting that if Pribula needs to run the show at Michigan State this coming Friday, Penn State must allow him to pass more regularly at some point. He is very dangeorus as a runner, but the Lions need him to pass to keep defenses honest, too. He completed one pass for 9 yards and ran eight times. More balance is a must moving forward.

Penn State-Rutgers odds and ends

–The Penn State defense has issues on third-and-long. It gives up way too many conversions. It got off the field enough today. But, that’s been a problem all year that hasn’t been fixed.

–Cornerback Kalen King did not play much on this afternoon, especially in the second half. It is unclear why, but his snap count was unexpectedly low.

—Nicholas Singleton bounced back after a fumble in the first half. He ran as hard and decisively as he has all season on a fourth-quarter series that iced the game for the home side.

–Against the Scarlet Knights, Penn State rotated receivers much more than in previous weeks. The approach didn’t change PSU’s fortunes much in the passing game, however. The Lions passed for just 88 yards on 14 attempts, and the team’s top pass catcher, junior KeAndre Lambert-Smith, was not even targeted on this day.