Three takeaways from Penn State football’s 37-10 Senior Day win vs. Nebraska
Penn State earned its fifth win of the year and second in a row to move to 5-6 on the season Saturday night with a 37-10 win over the Nebraska Cornhuskers in Beaver Stadium.
The Nittany Lions dominated the game on both sides of the ball from start to finish and showed how much talent the roster has in what’s largely been a disappointing season. It was a record-breaking game.
Let’s take a look at three takeaways from Saturday night’s game.
Penn State’s running backs prove they’re all-timers
The Nittany Lions have arguably boasted two of the best running backs in the country over the last four years. And despite the team’s struggles this year, they will both leave as record-holders after memorable performances against the Cornhuskers. Kaytron Allen broke Penn State’s career rushing record, previously held by Evan Royster, while Nick Singleton tied the program’s all-time rushing TD record and the all-time all-purpose (i.e. non-passing) TD record, both previously held by Saquon Barkley.
Allen eclipsed Royster’s mark of 3,932 career rushing yards, finishing the game with 160 yards and 3,954 yards for his career. Meanwhile, Singleton tied Barkley’s record of 53 all-purpose touchdowns and 43 rushing touchdowns by scoring a pair of TDs Saturday. The duo has been a consistent part of the Penn State offense throughout their careers and will now leave with career records and as two of the better backs in program history.
Nittany Lion offense has best game of season
Allen and Singleton played at a high level against Nebraska, but so did the rest of the Penn State offense. Offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki had his best game of the season, consistently getting the ball to his best players and getting them space to run in the open field.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer took another step forward and had his best game of the year by going 11-of-12 passing for 181 yards, including hitting on some explosive plays where he placed the ball perfectly to his wide receivers. The offensive line consistently got push up front in the running game and gave Grunkemeyer plenty of time to work in the passing game.
This is the closest the team has gotten to showcasing its actual offensive potential, and it was because everyone was playing together at a high level for the first time in 2025.
Bowl chances increase significantly
Penn State needed to win out when it was 3-6 to have a chance at a bowl game, and now it has won two games in a row with a final road matchup against Rutgers ahead. So next week’s game will now decide the Nittany Lions’ bowl fate.
PSU has shown its resiliency following a stunning season that saw it fall from a national title contender to a team on a six-game losing streak. The Nittany Lions have bounced back well, with the win against Michigan State and now by beating Nebraska to give them an excellent chance of reaching a bowl game. The Scarlet Knights will have their own bowl eligibility on the line next week after falling to Ohio State and dropping to the same 5-6 record as Penn State this season — giving meaning to what could have been a meaningless regular season finale for both programs.
This story was originally published November 22, 2025 at 10:14 PM.
