Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1540433
N O V E M B E R 2 0 2 5 3 5 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M P enn State is at the halfway mark of the 2025 season, and there are very few preseason predictions or expectations that have come to fruition. The Nittany Lions are no longer among the realistic contenders for the College Football Playoff. Head coach James Franklin has been fired. Senior quarterback Drew Allar is out for the season with an injury and is increas- ingly viewed as a Day 2 NFL Draft choice rather than a likely first-rounder. The transfer receivers have been adequate but not great. Second-year offen- sive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki has struggled to find game-changers with- out All-America tight end Tyler War- ren in his lineup anymore. And on the opposite side of the ball, Jim Knowles' defense is hurting now that junior line- backer Tony Rojas is out with a season- ending injury. It's fair to wonder whether the college football commentariat got anything right in its collective preseason assessment of Penn State, but one Nittany Lion has unquestionably delivered: Kaytron Al- len is having his best season yet in blue and white. Franklin had been adamant for months that the senior running back was going to parlay a productive offseason into a strong performance in his final college campaign. Despite some usage issues — we'll get to that momentarily — he has come through for the Lions. "Kaytron Allen has never had a healthy offseason," Franklin said in August. "He's always had a lingering injury from the season. This is the first healthy offsea- son he's ever had, and he's faster, he's stronger, he's more explosive than he's ever been. He's got a chance to put the country on notice." To some degree, Allen has done exactly that so far. Through Penn State's first six games, he was averaging 6.7 yards per carry, which ranked third in the Big Ten among rushers with more than a hand- ful of attempts. He has looked faster than in previous seasons and is eas- ily Penn State's most decisive running back. Blocking is not an issue, and there is more explosiveness in his game than there was in years past. "I think with Kaytron, it's always his physicality [that stands out]," Allar said. "He really sets a tone when he carries the ball, whether it's in the run game or if he's catching a check down, whatever the case is. Even in pass protection, he's always physical. "One thing we all appreciate about him is that he's the same guy every day, and he goes about his business the right way. I think he's grown as a leader during his four years here, and he's been more vocal. It's been cool to see his develop- ment. He's a tremendous player, and he's had a great year so far." First-year running backs coach Stan Drayton added that Allen has been maxi- mizing his opportunities after totaling 2,877 yards in his first three seasons as essentially a co-starter alongside class- mate Nicholas Singleton. "Kaytron is a guy who right now is in- stinctively doing a lot of great things," Drayton said. "He's making people miss. He has a real keen ability to anticipate. He's a very smart football player and has taken the offseason and put it into action very quickly. "I'm really happy with where he is right now. I feel like there's plenty of up- side for him. He'll continue to get better, but I've been really impressed with the production he's had. He has an ability to make people miss right now that is at a Allen was Penn State's leading rusher in the first half of the regular season, totaling 467 yards on 70 carries through six games. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS "I've just been trying to play free — sticking to what got me here, just being me and trying to get better and learn from everything. I don't think I've hit my peak yet. I'm still reaching for it." A L L E N