Suffice it to say, this is the most fun I’ve had all season long putting together these grades. Last night’s game felt like a whole season’s worth of frustrations being taken out on Nebraska, but will
it be enough to earn a Straight-A report card?? Let’s find out!
Quarterback: A
Ethan Grunkemeyer completed all but one of his 12 passing attempts and frankly, should’ve pitched a perfect game, but for a missed pass interference call against Nebraska on Kyron Hudson in the end zone. Penn State pounded the rock at will, which didn’t require Grunk to have to air it out much, but it sure helped open up the play-action passing attack to great success.
Running Back: A+
As I predicted in the roundtable on Friday, Kaytron Allen surpassed Evan Royster to become PSU’s all-time rushing leader, picking up 160 yards and a pair of TD’s on 25 carries. Nicholas Singleton also added a pair of TD’s to tie Saquon Barkley for the most career rushing TD’s, which he will hopefully be able to break next weekend at Rutgers. Singleton also took a flare pass 50 yards which helped set up a score for the Nittany Lions.
Wide Receiver: B
We got another Koby Howard sighting, as he made the most of his lone reception for 31 yards. Meanwhile, Trebor Peña led the way in receptions with four of them, including a 29-yarder, while Devonte Ross and Kyron Hudson each had an explosive 20-plus yard catch.
Tight End: B+
Andrew Rappleyea caught the lone TD pass of the night to open up the scoring and cap off a 98-yard scoring drive right after PSU had stuffed Nebraska on 4th-and-1. While it may have been a quiet night otherwise in catching/scoring, the tight ends were instrumental in run blocking and pass protection to help keep the offense humming throughout the night.
Offensive Line: A
You don’t typically rack up over 400 yards of total offense without solid play up front, and that’s precisely what PSU got last night from its offensive line. Only one sack was given up all night, and even that one wasn’t necessarily the O-line’s fault.
Defensive Line: A–
Between Dani Dennis-Sutton, Zane Durant, and Yvan Kemajou, the D-line accounted for all of PSU’s sacks last night. DDS and Zane especially were active in blowing up the Huskers’ O-line and aside from a 52-yard scamper on the opening drive, Nebraska’s stud running back Emmett Johnson was held in check. DDS did have another frustrating should-have-been-a-sack-but-instead-turned-into-a-touchdown moment when he failed to bring down Husker QB TJ Lateef, who scampered into the end zone.
Linebacker: A
Amare Campbell arguably made the play of the game, stuffing Johnson on 4th-and-1 near PSU’s end zone and denying what sure seemed like was going to be an opening drive TD for the Huskers. That play, followed by the 98-yard TD drive, absolutely destroyed whatever momentum Nebraska had at that juncture. Alex Tastch also fared quite well and looked was active in helping to keep the Husker offense in check.
Secondary: A-
Special Teams: B-
The kickoff coverage was rather suspect, giving up a couple of big returns that gave Nebraska solid starting field position. Ryan Barker nailed his lone field goal attempt, but also inexplicably shanked an extra point. Luke Reynolds reprising his fake punt run act from last year’s Minnesota game however, was a pleasant surprise.
Coaching: A+
As a 90’s child, the “Terry” chants immediately had my mind racing towards Jerry Springer, but man, what a moment for Terry Smith. He should’ve been enjoying a victory at home after the Indiana game, but better late than never, and perhaps no more appropriate than on Senior Night against his former boss at Temple and a former Penn Stater in Matt Rhule. Both sides of the ball were (for the most part) sharp and executing at a level we hadn’t seen all season long and the final result was a very satisfying blowout win.
(BONUS CATEGORY) Terry Smith PR Campaign: A
DISCLAIMER: This grade does not mean I am endorsing Terry to have the interim tag pulled from his head coaching title.
From Michael Robinson making a plea at halftime, to the constant zoom-ins on the “409” button Terry was wearing on the sidelines, to the players holding up their “Hire Terry Smith” signs postgame at midfield and flashing them at any camera they could see, to Terry’s postgame press conference comments about how “this is my locker room” it sure felt like a coordinated effort to make Pat Kraft seriously consider making Terry the full-time head coach in Happy Valley. I still have my doubts that Terry will be the guy in the end, but if Kraft whiffs on all of his top choices, I can’t say that I would be opposed to him being the “Break Glass In Case of Emergency” hire.
