Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1541276
D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 5 41 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. Kaytron Allen | RB | Sr. Allen gained a season-best 145 yards in Penn State's 25-24 loss at Iowa and goes into the Nittany Lions' final three games with a shot at the pro- gram's career rushing record. He has 3,613 yards in 51 career games — 319 yards short of Evan Roys- ter's record, which has stood since 2010. 2. Olaivavega Ioane | G | R-Jr. Penn State's offensive line has not lived up to preseason expectations, but Ioane has been a bright spot. Through nine games, he's earned a 77.5 blocking grade from Pro Football Focus, best on the team, and he's starting to garner some at- tention from NFL Draft analysts as possibly the top interior lineman available next year. 3. Ethan Grunkemeyer | QB | R-Fr. Grunkemeyer has gotten better with every start. He completed 53.6 percent of his passing attempts for 93 yards against Iowa, 67.9 percent for 145 yards at Ohio State and 71.0 percent for 219 yards versus Indiana. The Nittany Lions are headed for a big personnel overhaul this offseason, but Grunke- meyer's retention would seemingly be a very high priority. 4. Zakee Wheatley | S | R-Sr. Wheatley got the Nittany Lions off to a great start at Iowa, intercepting Mark Gronowski on the third play of the game to set up a Penn State touchdown and an early 7-0 lead. Through nine games, the veteran defensive back is second on the team with 61 tackles. 5. Gabriel Nwosu | P | R-Sr. Nwosu averaged 46.0 yards on 26 punts through nine games, with 11 of those attempts downed in- side the opponent's 20-yard line. He has also con- tinued to shine on kickoffs, delivering touchbacks on 32 of 48 attempts. KEY MOMENT Just as it had against Oregon in September, Penn State put together a gutsy comeback against Indi- ana, only to be dealt a crushing defeat. The Hoo- siers' final offensive play was the dagger. On third- and-goal from the 7-yard line, Omar Cooper Jr. leapt to catch a high pass from Fernando Mendoza in the back of the end zone, scraping his left foot across the turf just before landing out of bounds. Cooper's catch culminated a 10-play, 80-yard drive that started with just 1:51 left to play and the Hoo- siers out of timeouts. The Nittany Lions had played a strong second half, probably their best of the sea- son, but Indiana is No. 2 in the polls for a reason. BEST HIGHLIGHT Senior running back Nicholas Singleton burst 59 yards to the Indiana 2-yard line early in the fourth quarter of the Hoosiers' visit to Beaver Stadium, igniting a comeback by the hosts, who trailed 20-10 at the time. Aided by an inadvertent block from a referee, Singleton showcased his break- away speed on the play. He scored two plays later. The euphoria in Beaver Stadium ended up be- ing short-lived, but for a moment everyone got a glimpse at what this season might have been — both for Singleton and for the team. BOLD PREDICTION The Nittany Lions won't be going bowling for the first time since the 2020 season. Penn State was 3-6 following its 27-24 loss to Indiana with three games remaining. It would have to run the table to become bowl-eligible. While the schedule eases up after consecutive games against the nation's No. 1 and 2 teams, ESPN's Football Power Index gives PSU only a 42.3 percent chance of finishing with six wins. As to the question of whether Penn State even wants to extend its season, interim coach Terry Smith was unequivocal in early November. "Why wouldn't we want to play football?" Smith asked. "That's what we signed up to do. We want to take advantage of every opportunity in front of us." Michigan State, Nebraska and Rutgers have gone a combined 15-14 this season. The Cornhuskers are the best of those three teams at 7-3 in their third campaign under coach Matt Rhule. It would certainly be strange for Nebraska to be the team that slams the door on PSU's bowl hopes, given that Rhule is a peripheral figure in its coaching search, but it's been a strange season all the way around. — Matt Herb PENN STATE FOOTBALL SUPERLATIVES G A M E 7 – G A M E 9 Kaytron Allen is Penn State's top rusher with 736 yards through nine games. He's closing in on the school's career rush- ing record. PHOTO BY FRANK HYATT