Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1531683
2 2 F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 5 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M insisted after Allar's tough night that the rising senior was going to "handle it the right way." "He's hurting right now, and he should be hurting. We're all hurting," Franklin said in the postgame news conference. "It ain't easy to get in here right after the game and have a conversation after you just poured your guts out on that field and really did it all year long. "He'll handle it great. He'll be hurting tonight, and he'll be hurting tomorrow, and he'll hurt a little bit less the next day and so on. He's a committed guy who's going to do it the right way. It may not feel like it right now, but he'll learn from this. He'll be better for it, and so will we." The Middle Eight The themes that added up to a 13-2 start and a spot in college football's fi- nal four also exposed the flaws that kept Penn State from reaching the summit. The Nittany Lions couldn't overcome bad Drew, especially without help on the outside. And the defense, which played a nearly flawless first 28 minutes, allowed the Irish to convert 10 of their final 14 third-down attempts. The Lions had their chances. In fact, for those first 28 minutes, even with a few miscues, Penn State ran the show. It did so by using a formula that had worked against SMU and Boise State. The Lions ran, and ran well. Allen, whose perception changed for the better probably more than any other player dur- ing the season's final six weeks, was once again fantastic. He finished with a fairly pedestrian 4.3 yards per carry, but he did plenty of work on and off the ball. When the Nittany Lions went with Allen and Singleton in the game, Notre Dame didn't have many answers. Allen finished with 82 yards, while Singleton had 84. Both ran hard and played off one another extremely well. Defensive end Abdul Carter played with his left shoulder heavily taped due to an injury he suffered against Boise State, but he was fantastic, and fellow junior Dani Dennis-Sutton wasn't far behind (if he was behind at all). Dennis-Sutton and redshirt junior safety Zakee Wheatley helped the Nittany Lions win the turn- over battle with a takeaway apiece. As a team, Penn State totaled 5 sacks and 8 tackles for loss. But the speed bumps along the way knocked PSU off the pace. While the Irish thrived on third down, the Lions were just 3 of 11. Notre Dame won the middle eight minutes and held the ball for nearly 11 minutes in the third quarter. The change of pace stifled Penn State's defense, which was off-balance trying to defend the whole field. After halftime, Penn State gave the Irish a chance to be- lieve, and it bit them. "We would make them earn it, make them earn it, make them earn it — and then they would capitalize with a big play," Franklin said. "Something we've done really well all year long is making people earn it, but they had a good plan. Give their coaches a ton of credit. Their players made plays at specific times." Looking In The Mirror That's where the big picture comes in. The loss wasn't Franklin's fault. In fact, it was a pretty well-coached game when it came to the decisions that needed to be made. However, as the head coach, the loss was Franklin's responsibility. This is one that is going to linger. It certainly won't dispel the reputation that he carries in big games. It also reinforces the percep- tion of Penn State as the kind of program that can get to the brink of greatness but can't break through to the promised land. A teary-eyed Dominic DeLuca said af- ter the game that the priority for the team Facing a Notre Dame defense that was allowing the fifth-fewest passing yards in the FBS, Drew Allar completed 12 of 23 passes for 135 yards. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS