Todd Blackledge reveals ceiling for Penn State this season

Now the third-ranked team in the AP Top 25 Poll, the Penn State Nittany Lions have high expectations for themselves the rest of the way this season. That includes competing for a Big Ten Championship and making the College Football Playoff.

With those expectations in mind, former Penn State quarterback and current broadcaster Todd Blackledge appeared on Always College Football. There, he discussed Penn State’s ceiling, sharing that he believes this year’s team can reach it, in large part due to the improved play of quarterback Drew Allar.

“I think it is,” Todd Blackledge said. “I think Drew is a different quarterback. I think last year — he had good numbers last year but I think in a lot of ways he was playing not to lose a game. Not taking chances, not pushing the ball downfield. I think this year he’s been much more aggressive. He’s playing with a lot more freedom under Andy Kotelnicki. He’s actually thrown more interceptions this year, already, than he did all of last year, which is fine because I think he’s making more big plays too.”

After throwing for 202.4 yards per game and 6.8 yards per pass attempt in 2023, Allar is now throwing for 248.7 yards per game in 10.2 yards per pass attempt in 2024. He’s also thrown 11 touchdowns to four interceptions this season.

“They definitely have more explosive plays in the passing game than they had last year,” Blackledge said. “That was the biggest thing that they showed up when they played better competition. They had no explosive play ability. I think they have that now.”

Another key piece on the offense for Penn State that Todd Blackledge pointed to was tight end Tyler Warren. He’s been a phenomenal and multi-talented player for the Nittany Lions, doing a little bit of everything with 40 receptions for 513 yards and four touchdowns. He’s also rushed for 38 yards and a touchdown. Warren has even completed two passes and thrown for a touchdown.

“You mentioned the tight ends, and they have had a string of them, this guy they’ve got right now is so versatile and they’re so creative with him,” Blackledge said. “Not just catching the ball but they line him up in many different places. He’ll be a quarterback. He was a high school quarterback. They’ve run the read option with him around the goal line. They do all kinds of different things with him, and I like what Andy Kotelnicki has brought to the offense. They put stress on you because they show you so many different things. I don’t think they do a lot of complicated things but they sure present themselves in a way that puts stress on the defense.”

All of this comes in a season where Penn State made a change at offensive coordinator, bringing in Andy Kotelnicki from Kansas to replace Mike Yurcich. That, along with bringing in Tom Allen to be the next defensive coordinator, was vital for the Nittany Lions.

“I think their defense is still really talented. Their numbers aren’t the same as they were last year under Manny Diaz in terms of sacks and tackles for loss and those kinds of things,” Blackledge said. “They had a couple bad halves. They had a bad first half against Bowling Green at home, early. They had a bad first half against USC in their last time out, but other than that they’ve played really solid defense and they’ve got all kinds of talent. So, their defensive front is still affecting the quarterback in significant ways. It’s just not showing up in as many sacks at this point in the season.”

Penn State is currently ninth in the country in scoring defense, giving up just 14.5 points per game. The Nittany Lions are also making 2.33 sacks per game and 6.83 tackles for loss per loss a game this season.

“The other thing it does…the other thing you have to do, at least have in your repertoire when you play a team like Penn State is, we’ve got to keep a back in the chip on Abdul Carter,” Blackledge said. “We need help on him. That’s one less receiver on the route or we need to keep tight ends in and do more max protection. Well, that’s less guys running routes into the pass pattern. So, there’s a real trade-off even if they’re not getting there and sacking the quarterback, they’re affecting your offense and affecting your quarterback because of adjustments that you’re making to compensate for them.”

Next up for Penn State is a road trip to Wisconsin before the Nittany Lions host Ohio State. So, the schedule doesn’t get any easier from here.