Well, that was expected. Nevada opens the 2025 season 0-1 after falling to Penn State 46-11. While a 35-point loss is never pretty, reaching double digits (and covering the spread) was a nice factor.
There’s still plenty to take away from this game, including a lot of self-inflicted wounds for the Wolf Pack.
Scoring Summary
1st Quarter:
3:05: Nicholas Singleton 1-yard TD run (Ryan Barker PAT)
Nevada 0 – Penn State 7
1:41: Ryan Barker 28-yard FG
Nevada 0 – Penn State 10
2nd Quarter:
10:02: Kaytron Allen 12-yard TD run (Ryan
Barker PAT)
Nevada 0 – Penn State 17
4:52: Joe McFadden 28-yard FG
Nevada 3 – Penn State 17
2:22: Ryan Barker 28-yard FG
Nevada 3 – Penn State 20
0:23: Kyron Hudson 31-yard pass TD from Drew Allar (Ryan Barker PAT)
Nevada 3 – Penn State 27
3rd Quarter:
9:23: Ryan Barker 32-yard FG
Nevada 3 – Penn State 30
7:15: Nicholas Singleton 1-yard TD run (failed 2pt conversion)
Nevada 3 – Penn State 36
3:21: Ryan Barker 39-yard FG
Nevada 3 – Penn State 39
4th Quarter:
7:37: Ethan Grunkemeyer 6-yard TD run (Matthew Parker PAT)
Nevada 3 – Penn State 46
0:25: Marcus Bellon 9-yard TD pass from AJ Bianco (Jett Carpenter 2pt pass from Bianco)
Nevada 11 – Penn State 46
Final: Nevada 11, Penn State 46
Offense
Nevada started the game with the ball, and its first offensive drive was fairly decent. The Pack moved 44 yards down to the Penn State 31-yard line, but a fumble by Ky Woods ended Nevada’s drive after eight plays.
The first three drives for Nevada’s offense weren’t great. After the fumble, QB Chubba Purdy threw an interception on the first play of their second drive. The Wolf Pack punted on their next drive and finally got on the board in the second quarter from a Joe McFadden field goal.
The second half was just as rough for Nevada until the final seconds. The first drive in the second half for the Pack resulted in another fumble, followed by two punts and a turnover on downs. Nevada’s first touchdown came in the final seconds, as backup QB AJ Bianco found Marcus Bellon in the endzone. A two point conversion gave Nevada double digits and helped cover the spread.
It wasn’t a great game in the air for Purdy, who went 7-15 with 97 yards and an interception. He did, however, lead Nevada in the rushing department, collecting 55 yards on 14 attempts. Outside of Purdy, the run game was pretty weak as well, only collecting 78 total rush yards between six players.
Penn State’s defensive line had a big reason for that while also picking up three sacks and nine TFL. Overall, Nevada’s offense collected 203 total offensive yards. Bellon led the receiving department with 78 yards and a touchdown catch.
Nevada’s total time of possession was 26:20, and it had an average of 2:21. While the offensive stats don’t pop off the page, Penn State scored 16 points off of Nevada’s three turnovers. It was a loss either way, but those types of turnovers are all too familiar from last season, and with programs more around Nevada’s level, those mistakes can be more harmful.
Defense
Given the fact that Penn State was ranked No. 2 in the country before this game, I’m going to say only giving up 46 points is a small victory. Remember when USC put up 66 a few years ago? When Oregon put up 77 a few years before that? That’s what I fully expected from this game.
While Penn State scored four touchdowns on the ground, Nevada’s defense against the run was fairly decent. Running backs Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen are huge weapons in the backfield, but they didn’t dominate the stat sheet. Allen led the rush game with only 43 yards on eight carries. Singleton scored two touchdowns, but only collected 19 yards also on eight carries.
Drew Allar did well spreading the ball for Penn State, throwing for 217 yards and a touchdown pass. Eight players recorded double-digit receiving yards, including 84 yards for Kyron Hudson on six receptions.
Penn State picked up 438 total yards, more than double that of Nevada. The Nittany Lions held the ball for 33:40 and averaged 6.2 yards per play.
Like I mentioned before, Nevada did well in limiting explosive plays in Penn State’s run game. The longest rush for the Nittany Lions was a 13-yard run by Trebor Pena. Allar played well and was only sacked once, but I think it’s fair to say Nevada’s defense looked a bit better than its offense.
What’s Next
Nevada will head home and go from the No. 2 team in the nation to an FCS team in Sac State. It will be a nice step back for the Pack, but the Hornets are one of the better FCS teams in the country, and defending home turf is always a must.
Kick-off is scheduled for 2 p.m. PST at Mackay Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 6.
