Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1528325
N O V E M B E R 2 0 2 4 3 7 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M TOP FIVE PLAYERS 1. Tyler Warren | TE | Sr. Penn State has been blessed with a lot of great tight ends over the years, guys like Mickey Shuler, Kyle Brady, Mike Gesicki and Pat Freiermuth. None of them ever enjoyed an afternoon like the one Warren had at USC on Oct. 12. With his 17 catches, the senior tied an FBS single-game record for tight ends, and his 224 yards helped propel Penn State to a 33-30 victory. He's the Lions' leading pass catcher by a wide margin at the halfway point, with 40 receptions for 513 yards and 4 touch- downs. 2. Drew Allar | QB | Jr. Even though Penn State is more deter- mined to push the ball downfield than it was a year ago, Allar has improved his completion percentage from 59.9 in 2023 to 70.5 through the season's first six games. He was second in the Big Ten in yards per attempt (10.2) heading into PSU's second bye week. While his inter- ceptions are up (4 in six games), that's an inevitable tradeoff for the brinksmanship Penn State has shown on offense. 3. Zane Durant | DT | Jr. Defensive tackles don't tend to get a lot of attention, but the 6-foot-1, 288-pound Durant has been having a phenomenal season. Through the first half of the year, he was second on the team with 5.5 tack- les for loss and third with 2.5 sacks. He's Penn State's top defensive performer according to Pro Football Focus, with an overall grade of 86.3, including an 85.2 mark in run defense. 4. Jaylen Reed | S | Sr. When junior safety Kevin Winston Jr. was injured in Week 2 against Bowling Green, it set in motion a domino effect that included Reed's move from the "Lion" position back to his original safety spot. The loss of an NFL-caliber player from one of the team's thinner position groups was significant, but Reed has soft- ened the blow by thriving in his role with a team-high 39 tackles. He's been on the field more than any other PSU defender, logging 306 snaps through six games. 5. Ryan Barker | PK | R-Fr. Barker has eased one of Penn State's biggest concerns going into the heart of the Big Ten season. Taking the position after redshirt junior Sander Sahaydak missed 3 of 5 attempts in four games, the walk-on from Landenberg, Pa., went 6 for 6, including the win- ner against USC in overtime. Penn State's clash with the Trojans was its first since the 2022 sea- son opener at Purdue to be decided by less than a touchdown. In a game in which every point mattered, Barker came up big. KEY MOMENT You can't help but think that Penn State exor- cised some demons when it rallied to beat USC on the road in overtime. Yes, the Lions were 3.5-point favorites over the unranked Trojans, but this was the kind of high-profile midseason game against a talent-rich opponent that they had often struggled to win in previous years. When Barker's 36-yard kick sailed inside the left upright at the Coliseum to give Penn State a 33-30 victory, it was a moment of both exhilaration and relief. Now it's time to see how far the Nittany Lions can ride this wave of momentum. BEST HIGHLIGHT On an afternoon full of dazzling plays by both Penn State and USC, Warren turned in the best one early in the second half. Stationed at center after a series of shifts at the line and in the back- field, Warren snapped the ball to redshirt sopho- more quarterback Beau Pribula, who flipped it to Allar for a deep throw to Warren in the end zone. The veteran tight end reached behind the back of Trojans safety Zion Branch and caught the ball for a 32-yard touchdown to get Penn State's second-half comeback started. BOLD PREDICTION Penn State isn't going to run the table, but it is going to reach the College Foot- ball Playoff for the first time. Two of the season's toughest tests are imminent: a visit to Wisconsin on Oct. 26 and a home date against Ohio State on Nov. 2. Those teams were sporting a combined 10-3 record heading into Week 9. The Badgers are 3-1 at Camp Randall Stadium, with their only loss coming against Alabama. Ohio State looked formidable even in losing at Oregon and has won eight of its past 10 games at Beaver Stadium. It's not entirely farfetched to imagine the Lions dropping both of those contests. By outlasting the Trojans, though, PSU gave itself some margin for error. It can probably afford to lose two of its last six games and still make the 12-team field. Last year, five two-loss teams ap- peared in the top 12 of the CFP rankings following the conference championship games. In both 2022 and '21, six two- loss teams would have made a 12-team field. There were even three three-loss teams in the top 12 during that span. Conversely, no Power Five team with two losses finished outside of the top 12 those three years. November is going to be a scramble for sure, but the Lions have to feel good about how they've positioned themselves heading into the season's second half. — Matt Herb PENN STATE FOOTBALL SUPERLATIVES G A M E 3 - G A M E 6 Drew Allar completed 70.5 percent of his passes in the first six games of Penn State's season. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL