Kirk Herbstreit calls for 'deep shots' from Drew Allar if Penn State wants to defeat Ohio State

So far this season, Penn State has not unleashed Drew Allar as a major passing threat, but Kirk Herbstreit says that will have to change if the Nittany Lions want to topple Ohio State on the road today.

During an early-morning interview on SportsCenter, Herbstreit joined to discuss the upcoming Ben Ten rivalry matchup and was asked about Drew Allar’s role in a potential Penn State victory.

“Yeah, he’s a young guy,” Herbstreit remarked of Allar in comparison to former QB Sean Clifford. “They lose a four-year starting quarterback in Sean Clifford, who was another Ohio guy.”

While Allar has kept a clean sheet as a freshman with zero interceptions, and hasn’t really faced much of a test yet, Herbstreit is curious to see if Penn State opens up the playbook and finally lets their young quarterback dial up some deep shots.

“He’s done a good job of being efficient. He’s done what’s been asked of him, which is: distribute the football. He only has five passes like that, where he’s thrown it over 20 yards — only completed three of them.

“So that’s what I’m saying is… he’s been, at this point, highly-efficient, made great decisions, not turning the football over, and the way they’ve played defense against inferior opponents, that’a been good enough. That will be a different deal.”

As much as the game will likely rest of Allar’s shoulders, Herbstreit says the defense will need to set the Nittany Lions up to keep that offense from facing tough situations when they get the ball.

“And James Franklin, if he was sitting at this desk, would be the first one to tell you how their own defense plays in this game against Kyle McCord will impact how they attack offensively. They want to be cautious, they want to be highly efficient, but they also know as this game goes on, they’re going to have to hit two or three big shots downfield.”

Lastly, again speaking on Allar, Herbstreit called for the long ball.

“They’ve been very cautious with him up to this point. If you look at it, as far as throwing the ball downfield, it’s been non-existent. That will not work today against Ohio State’s defense. They’ve got to take some shots if they’re going to be able to compete and potentially win this game — and they know it.”

So, if Penn State turtles up and refuses to throw downfield, the offense could be in for a long day. But keep an eye on those explosive pass plays — because if Penn State can hit a couple, they’ll could set up nicely to win the ballgame.