The Good, The Bad & The Ugly: Reviewing Penn State football’s 49-10 destruction of Purdue
It is very likely that there’s little Penn State could have done to help its playoff case in the eyes of the College Football Playoff selection committee Saturday evening. The Nittany Lions were four score favorites over a Purdue team that is sitting at the bottom of the Big Ten, and playing like one of the worst teams in college football.
But there was still plenty of room for Penn State to set itself up well for the future — both short-term and long-term.
The Nittany Lions managed their starters’ snaps in a way that ensured they got out of West Lafayette as healthy as possible, and that put the team’s youth in position to succeed in a way that could help those players grow into larger roles.
Penn State head coach James Franklin said limiting reps and preserving starters was “really important” for his team. It’s the type of thing that can ensure the Nittany Lions can take on Minnesota next week — its toughest game left in the regular season — and be in prime position to close out the season with two more wins.
But those reps have to go to someone, and the young players that are up next are the primary beneficiaries. Like tight end Luke Reynolds, who caught his first career touchdown. The true freshman was one of the best in his class at tight end as a recruit, and is learning from one of the best in college football — potential Heisman candidate Tyler Warren.
“I think he’s got a really, really bright future,” Franklin said about Reynolds. “I think we think he’s playing really well. There’s a lot of guys like that. The ball hasn’t come his way a whole lot. And with what Tyler is doing, I don’t know if it will. So when he gets an opportunity like that, or some of the receivers (do), it’s really cool to see him capitalize on it. ... I think this is going to be extremely valuable, this year getting the reps that he’s getting. Also watching how Tyler Warren goes about his business. Tyler Warren is putting a clinic on and leaving a legacy here.”
Good
Tyler Warren: Franklin is right, Warren is leaving a legacy at Penn State. Now, the head coach was talking about the work he puts in and the example he sets, but he just as easily could have been talking about what he’s doing on the field — and Saturday was a continuation of that. Warren finished with eight catches for 127 yards and a touchdown and three carries for 63 yards and a rushing touchdown. The tight end is doing everything for this offense and is a major reason why it’s been able to find success as frequently as it has. He will eventually be tested by an elite defense again when the playoff rolls around, but for now he’s feasting on every opponent in front of him to firmly put himself in the Heisman Trophy conversation.
Drew Allar: Warren, deservedly, gets a lot of the attention but Allar has taken major steps forward this season. The Nittany Lion quarterback looks far more comfortable in his second year as a starter than he did in his first and is consistently making good decisions — while also taking calculated risks when they’re available. Allar is going to Warren a lot, occasionally missing an open receiver because of it, but it’s hard to argue that that isn’t the right thing to do. Not to mention, his mobility has taken a big step forward this year and the junior quarterback has been able to create more with his legs. He’s not perfect, and could potentially benefit from another year at Penn State, but there’s little doubt that he’s been one of the 10 best quarterbacks in college football this season.
Pass rush off the edge: Dani Dennis-Sutton saw a workload increase this week after being limited due to injury in the team’s previous two games, and he turned that into two tackles for loss and a sack. He’s playing like he’s close to 100% and should be back to his regular snap count next week, re-solidifying the defense as one of the best pass rushing groups in the country. That’s aided by Abdul Carter dominating almost every snap he’s out there. Carter is held — with it going uncalled — at a fairly high rate, otherwise it’s a safe bet that his sack totals would be even higher. His eight lead the team, but that still sells his current production short. Carter is living in opposing backfields and is proving why he should go in the top 10 of the 2025 NFL Draft.
Use of depth: As Franklin said, this was important for Penn State this week. The team’s second bye came in the middle of October, giving it six straight weeks of games to end the year. That’s not the end of the world, but getting an opportunity to rest the best players on the roster can only help as the Nittany Lions begin to turn their focus to the postseason. That’s not to say they’re overlooking any of their remaining opponents, but it was clear early that Penn State would be able to rotate players out and rest them once the game was in hand. That allowed those depth pieces, like Reynolds, to get valuable reps in preparation for the team’s likely playoff appearance in December.
Bad
Wide receivers: This group just is what it is at this point — and that’s underwhelming. There was reason for hope for the receivers early in the season because a few players put together big performances at different times, but that’s been the only way they get great production. Tre Wallace caught a 46-yard touchdown on a play he was wide open for, but outside of that the group didn’t produce. Some of that is Warren drawing as many targets as he does, but you’d think that would also open things up for the receivers because of the attention defenses pay to him. That hasn’t been the case and this remains a group that is need of at least one major addition this offseason from the transfer portal.
Ugly
Purdue: To the Boilermaker faithful’s credit, the stands at Ross-Ade Stadium were mostly full at kickoff of Saturday’s game, but those fans did not get their money’s worth. This Purdue team is far and away the worst team in the conference and had no chance as soon as the game kicked off. Penn State walked down the field on the Boilermakers and won however it wanted to on offense throughout the game. There isn’t a whole lot of reason for optimism either, with the team being an easy target to have any good players it has poached in the portal — much like last year when wide receiver Deion Burks left for Oklahoma and defensive end Nic Scourton left for Texas A&M. But hey, at least Purdue’s No. 13 ranked men’s basketball team knocked off No. 2 Alabama on Friday.
This story was originally published November 17, 2024 at 3:39 PM.
