Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1509432
N O V E M B E R 2 0 2 3 17 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M By The Numbers 1 Turnover committed by the Penn State football team in its first five games. The Nittany Lions didn't have a give- away until sophomore Nicholas Singleton fumbled the open- ing kickoff at Northwestern in Week 5. Prior to Singleton's miscue, which allowed the Wildcats to take an early lead on a 33-yard field goal, Penn State was the only team in the coun- try that had not yet turned the ball over. The Lions didn't suffer any additional turnovers in Evanston, and they headed into their nonconference finale against Massachusetts on Oct. 14 with a plus-11 turnover margin, best in the FBS. 3 . 8 Nicholas Singleton's average yards per carry through the Nittany Lions' first five games. That was a decline of 3 yards per carry from his average as a true freshman last season. Coach James Franklin noted that the offense in general "has got to do a better job of being more explosive when the opportunities pres- ent themselves." But while the Lions were struggling to produce the kind of big plays they generated with regular- ity last year, they were fourth in the Big Ten in rushing head- ing into Week 6 with an average of 194.8 yards per game. 6 Consecutive victories for Penn State against Big Ten West Division opponents, a streak that began with a 35-31 win at Purdue in the Nittany Lions' 2022 season opener. PSU has compiled a 21-8 record all-time against foes from the West Division. The Big Ten's divisional structure is expected to be scrapped with the addition of USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington next year. 1 3 Matches without a loss for the Penn State women's soccer team to open its 2023 season. The fourth-ranked Nittany Lions were 11-0-2 following a 2-1 victory over Ohio State on Oct. 8. It was the team's best start in Erica Dambach's 17 seasons as head coach. 1 4 Touchdown drives of four minutes or more by Penn State in its first five games. That's one more than the Nittany Lions had in all 13 games last season. 3 2 Consecutive quarters in which Penn State posted at least one score. The streak dates back to the first quarter of the Nittany Lions' visit to Rutgers last November, during which they scored on a 100-yard kickoff return by Nicholas Singleton and a 14-yard fumble return by line- backer Kobe King. Heading into the Massachusetts game on Oct. 14, it was the longest such streak in the country. 3 0 + Points scored by Penn State in 12 consecutive games prior to the matchup against Massachu- setts. It was the longest active streak in the country heading into the Minutemen's visit to Beaver Stadium, and the lon- gest streak at PSU since the 1993-94 seasons, when the Lions reached the 30-point plateau in 15 consecutive games. 6 4 The disparity in plays between Penn State (97) and Iowa (33) in the Nittany Lions' 31-0 shutout vic- tory on Sept. 23. According to TruMediaSports, the game marked the first time in the past five seasons that a team out- snapped an FBS opponent by more than 60 plays. 90.6 Overall defensive grade for redshirt sophomore line- backer DOMINIC DeLUCA through Penn State's first five games, as deter- mined by Pro Football Focus. A former walk- on, DeLuca had seen action on 115 snaps and boasted the highest grade of any player on the Nittany Lions' de- fense, including a 91.9 mark against the run. 2 , 0 1 1 Career saves by senior goaltender Josie Bothun of the Penn State women's ice hockey team. Bothun, a native of Wyoming, Minn., made 17 saves in a 1-1 overtime tie against visiting Con- necticut on Sept. 30, surpassing 2,000 for her career. She became only the third player in program history to reach the 2,000-save plateau, join- ing Nicole Paniccia (2,829 saves from 2012-14) and Celine Whitlinger (2,323 from 2012-16). PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL