Penn State opened its season against an opponent it knew it would beat, so the Lions used the afternoon to work on the things we all knew they needed to work on. There were some answers we already had, but others, well, not so much. How would the defensive line look with Abdul Carter, Amin Vanover, Hakeem Beamon, and Dvon J-Thomas gone? Will Jim Knowles’ aggressive defense be installed by the time the game kicked off? And, of course and most importantly, what will Penn State’s passing game look like
with a reworked wide receiver room?
We got some answers on Saturday, and will probably continue to get some more in the next couple of weeks. Fortunately, Nevada proved to be more than a pushover for the Lions, which allowed Penn State to put some things on tape that will need to be cleaned up as the season goes on.
The Wolfpack actually started the game moving the ball rather well, but each of their first two drives ended in turnovers. The first, a forced fumble by Dani Dennis-Sutton, was recovered by A.J. Harris, leading to the Nittany Lions’ first score of the day. The second drive was an even weirder interception by Zane Durant, one where Nevada quarterback Chubba Purdy tried to avoid a sack by chucking the ball away, right into the hands of aforementioned Durant. The Wolf Pack defense held on, forcing the Nittany Lions to a field goal. In fact, Nevada forced Penn State to several field goals on the evening, showing that the offense still has some things to straighten out if it wants to be at optimal performance come September 27th.
All that said, Penn State did not punt the ball at all in this contest, and only one of their 10 drives did not lead to a score. If that keeps up, the Lions will be hard to stop moving forward. Nevada, to their end, did manage to get themselves on the board with a field goal in the second quarter and a touchdown late in the fourth.
Penn State’s trio of transfer wide receivers showed why they were coveted players in the transfer portal. Trebor Peña and Kyron Hudson accounted for 7 and 6 receptions, respectively, and Devonte Ross had a reception of his own as well. For the first time in what feels like forever, actual wide receivers got the bulk of the receptions, instead of a tight end. Here’s to hoping that trend continues.
All in all, the Nittany Lions got a little bit of everything: An opponent they were never afraid they’d lose to, but tough enough to make them work for it. The ability to have some things on tape to work on, and one of the biggest questions in the offseason having some early answers.
Stats and Storylines
2 – The two forced fumbles by Dennis-Sutton matches the number of forced fumbles he had all of last season.
84% – This is one of Drew Allar’s most efficient games as a Nittany Lion. Let’s see if that efficiency keeps up as the difficulty ramps up.
Never satisfied – James Franklin got in a tussle with the refs at the end of the game, as Ethan Grunkemeyer and the team got called for a delay of game, due to being unable to snap the ball because the refs held him back.
Speaking of – Grunkemeyer looked quite competent in mop up duty, going 7-of-9 for 86 yards and a touchdown.
