Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1541276
3 6 D E C E M B E R 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 P enn State had its best offensive day of the Ethan Grunkemeyer era in its 27-24 loss to Indiana on Nov. 8. It was no surprise that the re- newed success for coordinator Andy Ko- telnicki's attack came after he let the red- shirt freshman quarterback throw the ball down the field. Grunkemeyer's average of 7.1 yards per attempt versus the Hoosiers was easily a career-high. He posted mid- dling stats — 22 of 31 for 219 yards, with a touchdown and an interception — but his ability to challenge the Hoosiers' second- ary via a vertical passing attack elevated the whole offense. "I felt super comfortable," Grunke- meyer said afterward. "I think just seeing the windows felt good. Game 1, maybe they felt tight. Game 2, they loosen up a little bit, and Game 3, you get to see it better." The Lions didn't do enough on offense to win the game, but their 336 total yards were the team's most since totaling 337 against UCLA on Oct. 4. It was something to build on entering the final three games of the season. "I thought Ethan grew up in the sec- ond half," interim head coach Terry Smith said. "He started making some good throws and gave us a chance to win. He led us back. He took control of the hud- dle. I thought he was big-time, and I'm just looking forward to him continuing to get better and continuing to develop. I thought he gave us a chance to win, and that's all you can ask." Here's a closer look at how the offense has performed since Grunkemeyer took over as starter in Penn State's visit to Iowa on Oct. 18. Quarterbacks The Indiana game was Grunkemeyer's third start after replacing injured senior Drew Allar in mid-October. It was an encouraging performance, with Grunke- meyer showing an ability to find gaps in the coverage and deliver catchable balls between defenders. For the season, he's completed 64 of 98 attempts (65.3 per- cent) for 562 yards, with 2 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. Grunkemeyer has stayed healthy dur- ing his stint as the starter, which is abso- lutely crucial for the Nittany Lions. Red- shirt sophomore Jaxon Smolik is dealing with a left arm injury and was listed as "out" prior to the Ohio State and Indiana games. True freshman Bekkem Kritza is healthy enough to play, but the coach- ing staff would prefer not to expedite his path to the field. The depth is so shaky that redshirt senior receiver Liam Clif- ford is now spending a majority of his practice time with the quarterbacks and has taken No. 2 reps in warmups. For the rest of this season, Penn State will go as far as Grunkemeyer can take it. If he were to get hurt, the team's outlook would diminish dramatically. Running Backs It's been the Kaytron Allen show for much of the year. He's now the program's all-time leader in rushing attempts (697 P RO G R ESS R E PO RT: P RO G R ESS R E PO RT: OFFENSE OFFENSE The Nittany Lions show signs of improvement in loss to Indiana G R E G P I C K E L | G R E G . P I C K E L @ O N 3 . C O M Against the Hoosiers, wide receiver Trebor Peña had his biggest game since joining the Nittany Lions, totaling 99 yards on 6 catches. PHOTO BY FRANK HYATT