Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1541990
1 0 J A N U A R Y 2 0 2 6 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M F ormer Penn State coach James Franklin sat for multiple inter- views at Big Ten Media Days last July in Las Vegas. There was one topic he touched on in nearly all of them: the Nittany Lions' career rushing yards mark. "We've got two great running backs," Franklin said. "From a historical stand- point at the running back position, there have been a ton of really good players [at Penn State]. It's amazing to me that both Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen have a chance to be the all-time leading rushers in Penn State history, one and two, and they've been sharing carries their entire career." If anyone was going to break Evan Royster's all-time mark of 3,932 yards on 686 carries from 2007-10, it ap- peared prior to the season that Singleton was the more likely of the two seniors to do it. He entered the 2025 campaign with a slight lead, needing only 1,021 yards to Allen's 1,056. But more than that, Singleton had always displayed a propensity for picking up yards in large chunks. By mid-October, however, both had fallen off the pace, and Penn State's difficulties in the running game played a role in the three-game losing streak that brought an end to Franklin's coach- ing tenure. At midseason, it looked as though Royster's record was safe. Then came the appointment of vet- eran defensive assistant Terry Smith as interim head coach, and the his- toric chase resumed in earnest. Smith thought that Penn State's best chance of reviving a struggling offense was to emphasize the ground game in the sea- son's second half. Allen had enjoyed more success in the first six games and would be the team's primary ball carrier, but both would see their roles increased, with Smith wanting them to combine for at least 30 touches per game the rest of the way. The change in offensive focus re- sulted in both running backs making some program history. Allen passed Royster's mark with a 3-yard carry in the fourth quarter of Penn State's 37-10 victory over Ne- braska on Nov. 22. He finished with 160 yards against the Cornhuskers and fol- lowed that performance by rushing for a career-high 226 yards in a 40-36 vic- tory at Rutgers a week later. Heading into Penn State's Pinstripe Bowl matchup against Clemson, Allen has 4,180 yards on a school-record 769 carries. He is only the 23rd player in Big Ten history to cross the 4,000-yard threshold, and he did it while splitting carries with Singleton for the duration of his career at Penn State. "I'm still just trying to wrap my head around it, and I've just been trying to take it one game at a time," Allen said. BACKFIELD DUO SETS RECORDS IN SEASON'S HOMESTRETCH 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 NEWS & NOTES With a fourth-quarter carry against Nebraska, Kaytron Allar became the Nittany Lions' all-time leading rusher. He has 4,180 yards going into PSU's bowl game against Clemson. PHOTO BY MARK SELDERS/PENN STATE ATHLETICS PENN STATE'S CAREER RUSHING LEADERS Rk. Player Yrs. Yds. 1. Kaytron Allen 2022-pres. 4,180 2. Evan Royster 2007-10 3,932 3. Saquon Barkley 2015-17 3,843 4. Nicholas Singleton 2022-pres. 3,461 5. Curt Warner 1979-82 3,398 6. Tony Hunt 2003-06 3,320 7. Blair Thomas 1985-87, 89 3,301 8. Curtis Enis 1995-97 3,256 9. D.J. Dozier 1983-86 3,227 10. Larry Johnson 1999-2002 2,953