Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1529598
D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 4 3 5 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. Warren was named one of eight semifinalists for the Mackey Award in early November, and it's hard to imagine anyone beating him out for that honor, which goes to the nation's top tight end. Through 10 games, he was third in the Big Ten with 808 receiving yards on 67 catches, and he had scored 5 touchdowns. Those numbers would be impressive on their own, but they don't even begin to describe the range of Warren's contribu- tions to Penn State's offense. He was also fifth on the team in rushing with 157 yards and 4 touch- downs on 16 carries and had completed 2 of 4 passes for 26 yards and a TD. 2. Abdul Carter | DE | Jr. Just as James Franklin and defensive coordina- tor Tom Allen predicted, Carter has only gotten better as he's acclimated to the defensive end position after two seasons at linebacker. Heading into Penn State's road finale at Minnesota on Nov. 23, Carter was leading the Big Ten in tackles for loss (17.5) and was tied for third in sacks (8). 3. Drew Allar | QB | Jr. Penn State bounced back nicely from its loss to Ohio State on Nov. 2, and Allar's resilience has been a big part of its recent success. Against Washington and Purdue, the junior quarterback completed 78.8 percent of his attempts (37 of 47) for 467 yards, with 4 touchdowns and no interceptions. 4. Jaylen Reed | S | Sr. Reed doesn't get as much attention as Carter, but he's been highly impactful for a Penn State defense that has ranked among the nation's best despite playing nearly the entire season without one of its top players, junior safety Kevin Winston Jr. Reed's 19-yard pick-six against Wisconsin was a game-changing play in a very literal sense (more on that later), and he had another interception in the second quarter versus Washington to help Penn State pull out to a 28-0 halftime lead. 5. Kaytron Allen | RB | Jr. Junior Nicholas Singleton has been dealing with a lingering injury, so the Lions haven't been able to split carries roughly 50-50 the way they did the two previous seasons. Prior to Penn State's trip to Minnesota, Allen had amassed 139 rushing at- tempts to Singleton's 95, and he had responded by gaining a team-best 654 yards and 5 touchdowns. KEY MOMENT The Nittany Lions appeared to be in trouble at Wisconsin on Oct. 26 when Allar was knocked out of the game just before halftime with an apparent leg injury. His backup, redshirt sophomore Beau Pribula, was largely untested as a passer, and the Lions were already trailing 10-7 in their prime- time clash at Camp Randall Stadium. PSU sputtered on its first two drives after the quarterback change, but a defensive play changed everything. Reed stepped in front of an ill-advised pass by Braedyn Locke and returned it 19 yards for a touchdown. Suddenly, the Lions had the lead, and it was the Badgers who were on their heels. As it turned out, there was no need to worry about Pribula's readiness. After a couple of punts early in the third quarter, the Lions scored back- to-back touchdowns, chewing up a combined 12:50 of game time in the process. Pribula fin- ished with 11 completions in 13 attempts for 98 yards and a touchdown, and the Lions won, 28- 13. Reed's interception was the turning point. BEST HIGHLIGHT Warren could assemble a Mackey Award-worthy highlight reel just from his afternoon at Purdue. He had 190 all-purpose yards in Penn State's 49-10 romp over the Boilermakers on Nov. 16, including a 38-yard catch on a trick play in the second quarter on which he took the snap and lateralled to Allar, who threw back to him for a big gain down the left sideline. He also had a 48-yard touchdown run on a direct snap that seemed to catch the Boilermak- ers flat-footed. Take your pick as to which was the better highlight. They were both dazzling moments from what is sure to go down as the best-ever sea- son by a Nittany Lion tight end. BOLD PREDICTION Maybe we're stretching the definition of "bold" here, but Warren is on pace to become the 103rd first-team All-American in Penn State football his- tory. He's also got a chance to become the first Penn State player to finish in the top five of the Heisman Trophy balloting since running back Sa- quon Barkley was fourth in 2017. That would be a remarkable feat considering that PSU has only had three top-10 finishers this century: Barkley, quarterback Michael Robinson (fifth, 2005) and running back Larry Johnson (third, 2003). — Matt Herb PENN STATE FOOTBALL SUPERLATIVES G A M E 7 – G A M E 1 0 In Penn State's victories over Washington and Purdue, Drew Allar completed nearly 79 percent of his passing attempts for 467 yards and 4 touchdowns. PHOTO BY FRANK HYATT