Tale of the Tape: Penn State offense vs. Michigan State defense
The struggles of the Penn State offense have led to a rare in-season staff change for head coach James Franklin. After removing Mike Yurcich as offensive coordinator following a loss to Michigan, the Penn State offense still lacked the desired explosiveness and quick passing fans had hoped to see against Rutgers. And an injury to quarterback Drew Allar may have prevented any further development in last week’s game with Ja’Juan Seider and Ty Howle handling the offensive playcalling.
Penn State’s offense looks to have Allar available this week as they play Michigan State in Detroit on the Friday after Thanksgiving. Will the Nittany Lions end the year with a bang against the Spartans and retain possession of the Land Grant Trophy? Or will the offense still have their moments of agony that will be sure to frustrate fans?
Here is a look at how Penn State’s offense stacks up according to the numbers this season against the Michigan State defense.
Passing yards per game
Penn State owns one of the nation’s most disappointing passing offenses. The Nittany Lions rank 102nd in the nation with just 195.4 passing yards per game. That average went down last week with an early injury to starting quarterback Drew Allar. Penn State went heavy on the run after running the remainder of last week’s game against Rutgers with backup quarterback Beau Pribula, a more mobile option at quarterback anyway. But Penn State’s passing game has been in the spotlight all season.
The days of Micigan State’s no-fly zone feel pretty distant these days. Michigan State ranks 74th in the nation against the pass and they have given up 21 passing touchdowns. Opposing teams are passing for an average of 231.9 yards per game this season.
Passing yards per attempt
Penn State’s inability to generate high-explosion plays has been the biggest complaint about the team all season long. The passing game has failed to get big plays going as the passing game averages just 6.2 yards per pass attempt. That ranks the Nittany Lions in a tie for 115th in the nation with Sam Houston State, BYU, Louisiana-Monroe, Charlotte, Kent State, Minnesota, and Nebraska. That is not exactly the kind of company Penn State typically wants to be lumped in with.
Just two players on Penn State’s roster are averaging at least 10 yards per reception with KeAndre Lambert-Smith averaging 12.52 yards per reception and tight end Tyler Warren averaging 10.11 yards per reception. Drew Allar is averaging 6.3 yards per pass attempt.
Michigan State allows 7.5 yards per attempt this season. Last week saw Indiana average 5.8 yards per attempt. Washington, Michigan, and Ohio State all averaged over 10.0 yards per attempt against Michigan State this season.
Rushing yards per game
Penn State’s running game has been more steady than most might think this season. But the Nittany Lions rank 42nd in the nation with an average of 177.91 rushing yards per game despite not having a single game with a 100-yard rusher. Penn State let the running game take over in the second half last week in a win against Rutgers, thanks in part to the mobility of Beau Pribula at quarterback filling in for an injured Allar. Penn State rushed for 234 yards against the Scarlet Knights, the third-most team rushing yards in a game for the team this season.
One quick side note about Penn State’s running game; Michigan State was the only team to prevent Penn State from scoring a rushing touchdown last season.
Michigan State has been decent against the run this year. Michigan State’s run defense is allowing 139.0 yards per game this season. The Spartans have been gashed a little more as the season has played out. Micigan State allowed 195 rushing yards to Indiana and Minnesota picked up 200 yards on the ground in late October.
Rushing yards per attempt
Penn State’s running game is picking up an average of 4.37 yards per rushing attempt, which ranks 67th in the nation. Kaytron Allen (4.86 yards per attempt) and Nick Singleton (4.03 yards per attempt) are each down with their average this season from their dynamic freshman seasons in 2022. Singleton averaged 6.80 yards per attempt a year ago and Allen was averaging 5.19 yards per attempt.
Trey Potts has averaged 5.33 yards per attempt when he gets a chance to get on the field, and backup QB Beau Pribula has averaged 5.98 yards per attempt when he is on the field.
Michigan State is allowing 3.81 yards per attempt this season. But the last two weeks have seen the average go up with Ohio State rushing for 5.53 yards per attempt and Indiana averaging 4.24 yards per attempt.
Points per game
Penn State’s scoring average is still in the top 20 in the nation with 36.7 points per game this season. That ranks Penn State 15th in the nation although it is fair to point out the Nittany Lions have two games with 63 points scored against an FCS school (Delaware) and one of the worst FBS programs this season (UMass).
The only teams to hold Penn State to fewer than 30 points this season have been Ohio State (12 points), Michigan (15 points), and Rutgers (27 points).
Michigan State is allowing an average of 27.1 points per game this year, which ranks 11th in the Big Ten ahead of Illinois, Indiana, and Purdue. Penn State scored at least 30 points against two of those teams (Illinois and Indiana) this season (Penn State did not play Purdue this season).
