Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1541990
J A N U A R Y 2 0 2 6 11 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M "Unfortunately, the season hasn't gone as planned. If we could have been win- ning the whole season and I'd not got- ten the record, I'd rather do that than get my record. But I'm just glad I got an opportunity to do this. I'm grateful for my team. "It's special, because it went back to all the winter workouts — pushing each other and feeding off each other. It just means a lot. [Singleton] is my brother, and we're just tight. We're always talk- ing to each other, off the field and on the field. He's helped me grow, and I hope I've helped him grow on the field and outside the field. He's my brother, that's for sure." Singleton set some Penn State records of his own. At Rutgers, the first of his two rushing touchdowns moved him ahead of Saquon Barkley for most ca- reer TDs and most rushing scores with 55 and 45, respectively. He also passed Barkley for most career all-purpose yards in Penn State history, totaling 5,586 to Barkley's 5,538. "The record and especially the win meant a lot," Singleton said follow- ing the back-and-forth clash with the Scarlet Knights. "I want to thank my teammates, especially the O-line. A win's a win. We'll take it. "The emotions were a lot. I was happy. My teammates were there to celebrate with me and my coaches. It meant a lot to me. I love my teammates to death. Breaking all of these records, I'm just grateful." Prior to the Iowa game on Oct. 18, which was Smith's first as interim coach, he said he was going to do what- ever he could to ensure that Allen and Singleton both left Penn State as record holders. "I didn't want to make it a point to tell the coaches to go out of their way [to get them carries]," Smith said. "But I knew that if we stuck to our game plan and got those guys 30-plus touches, they would do exactly what they've done the back end of the season." Because of the transfer portal, it's in- creasingly uncommon to see dynamic backfield duos like the Allen-Singleton combo in college football. Either player could have transferred and been a one- man show at some other school, but in- stead they stuck together for four years and emerged as record setters and NFL prospects. While Singleton didn't end up pass- ing Royster, he did bring his career rushing yardage total to 3,461, which ranks fourth in school history. "I can't recall ever seeing two backs with such great yardage numbers," Smith said. "It's rare for two guys to share the ball for four years. Saquon Barkley overlapped with Miles Sand- ers, but [Allen and Singleton] really share. These guys literally shared for four years, and both of them reaped the rewards of sharing. It speaks vol- umes about their character. One of them could have transferred, one of them could have gone somewhere and been the guy. For them to stay with us, it speaks volumes about Penn State it- self." ■ "I didn't want to make it a point to tell the coaches to go out of their way [to get Allen and Singleton car- ries]. But I knew that if we stuck to our game plan and got those guys 30-plus touches, they would do exactly what they've done the back end of the season." T E R R Y S M I T H Nicholas Singleton is now Penn State's career leader in rushing touchdowns (45), total TDs (55) and all-purpose yards (5,586), surpassing Saquon Barkley in all three categories. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS