Winners and losers from Penn State’s win over Purdue
In what turned into an eventual win, there is plenty for Penn State to work on before the home opener next week against Ohio. They ended up scoring a game-winning touchdown with under two minutes left in the game.
The Nittany Lions had their moments, they just couldn’t build the momentum for more than a quarter. Despite how negative this all sounds, and there is plenty to be down about, we also saw a ton to look forward to.
We saw flashes from a supremely talented freshman recruiting class that points to the future of the program being in good hands. For now, it seems that the veteran presence on the team is still going to be relied upon.
Apart from the actual winner and loser of the game, there are more individual performances to highlight. Some were on the field, some were off. The spotlight hits everyone in a game like this.
Winner: Nick Singleton
Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
[autotag]Keyvone Lee[/autotag] started the game for Penn State but it was [autotag]Nick Singleton[/autotag] who came in and got people’s attention. He came in and immediately demonstrated the skillset that made him the best running back recruit in the nation last year. While he only had nine carries in the game, he did plenty with that smalls ample size to show he is the future.
Loser: Manny Diaz
Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports
The [autotag]Manny Diaz[/autotag] defense was hyped all offseason, while it flashed it certainly fell flat the majority of the night. They forced one turnover but the defense as a whole just could not tackle anyone all night. Aidan O’Connell was hitting his receivers and they were picking up large gains after the catch. They went for big hits non-stop, no technique with tackles, and it cost Penn State all night.
Winner: Barney Amor
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The team lost Jordan Stout to the NFL, [autotag]Barney Amor[/autotag] has stepped up perfectly to replace hi. An average punt of 46.9 yards per punt and pinned four of them inside the 20 yard line. several of his punts were able to stall Purdue drives before they even started.
Loser: The Offensive Line
Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
All night the offensive line struggled to give the running backs holes and the quarterbacks time. The running backs averaged 3.1 and the line gave up four combined tackles for a loss and sacks. They simply cannot get away with this all year, they need to establish the running game and protect whoever is under center.
Winner: The Transfer Portal
Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
[autotag]Mitchell Tinsley[/autotag] coming over from Western Kentucky this spring may be the move that ignites this teams passing attack. He put up an impressive seven receptions, 84 yards, and one touchdown while filling in the [autotag]Jahan Dotson[/autotag] role that was left open. He certainly fed off of Purdue focusing on Parker Washington, expect that to continue all year.
Loser: The Quarterback Situation
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[autotag]Sean Clifford[/autotag] had four touchdowns and 282 passing yards, none of those were as impressive as what we saw from [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] in one drive. Allar had Twitter buzzing, and he was even impressing draft analysts more than Clifford ever did and he isn’t draft eligible for three years! We need to see what Florida did with Chris Leak and Tim Tebow in 2006, let’s get a rotation of the two going based on situations.
