Penn State football’s season came to an end with an excruciating 27-24 loss against Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff semifinals in the Orange Bowl. The Nittany Lions had high hopes of clinching a ticket to the national championship in Atlanta until the game’s final minute.
While the quarterbacks and wide receivers had rough outings, the running backs and front seven thrived despite the loss. For the last time, let’s take a look at how everyone fared.
Drew Allar needed to be much better if Penn State were to win.
Instead, his 135 passing yards tied a season-low, and his 52.2% completion rate was his third-worst of the year. Allar’s interception with 0:35 left in regulation in Penn State’s territory allowed Notre Dame to run the clock down and kick the game-winning field goal. He went 12-of-23, and one incompletion was a short pass to Nick Singleton that would’ve been a touchdown. Instead, Penn State kicked a field goal.
Allar now has an elimination-sealing interception in the playoffs in addition to his red zone pick against Oregon, which effectively clinched the Ducks the Big Ten Championship last month. He rarely makes mistakes, but it’s almost exclusively in big moments when he does. Unfortunately for Allar, it’ll only be more difficult to avoid chaos without Tyler Warren next season.
Notre Dame’s rushing defense was among college football’s best, but it sure didn’t seem that way against Penn State. The running backs combined for 166 yards, as Singleton had 84 and Kaytron Allen had 82. Singleton’s three-touchdown game was the second of his career.
Singleton also had two catches for 33 yards, while Allen had a 6-yard grab. Their versatility as a duo was nearly enough to send the Nittany Lions to the national championship in Atlanta.
Yikes.
In the biggest game of the season, Penn State’s wide receivers were missing in action on the stat sheet. That’s unacceptable.
Warren had another good game, with six catches for 75 yards, and two runs for 21 yards. He stiff-armed and bodied his way to first downs and big gains, but he never found the end zone. Still a quality performance in his final Penn State game, though.
The offensive line only allowed two tackles for loss and one sack. The Nittany Lions had 204 rushing yards, so the offensive line was productive. The only other real blemish was the two false starts.
Penn State’s defensive line was a bright spot in the loss. Abdul Carter played through an injury and had two tackles for loss and a sack. Dani Dennis-Sutton had an even better game, with two sacks and an interception. Coziah Izzard also sacked Riley Leonard before Allar’s interception.
The front seven held Notre Dame’s ground game to 116 yards. That’s pretty impressive considering Leonard’s mobility and Jeremiyah Love’s and Jadarian Price’s abilities.
Jaden Greathouse’s 54-yard touchdown was probably the worst moment of the season for Penn State’s secondary. He was wide-open and broke Jaylen Reed’s ankles en route to the end zone.
Penn State allowed 267 total passing yards, Leonard’s second-most this season. However, Zakee Wheatley thrived with 16 tackles, a sack, and an interception.
Riley Thompson had a nice moment by pinning the Irish at their own 11-yard line. However, Zion Tracy struggled on punt returns, at one point calling for a fair catch at the 2-yard line. Ryan Barker was reliable with every extra point made, and a 20-yard field goal attempt. It was a mixed bag, given Tracy’s woes.
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Nolan is a senior journalism major from Silver Spring, Maryland. He’s an avid D.C sports and Liverpool fan who loves going to games in his free time. Nolan mainly writes about Penn State football, men’s hockey, and baseball. You can follow him on Twitter @nolan_wick or email him at [email protected].
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