Drew Allar injury update: What's the latest on the Penn State quarterback as Ohio State week starts?

Penn State quarterback Drew Allar missed the second half of last weekend’s 28-13 win over Wisconsin with a left leg injury. The college football world is fully focused on whether or not he will play this weekend in a top-five matchup with Ohio State at Beaver Stadium (Noon ET, FOX). Nittany Lions coach James Franklin kicked off one of the biggest weeks of his coaching career with a news conference on Monday afternoon. What did he have to say about the second-year passer’s status at the start of the week? He did not announce it as a long-term injury. But, whether or not Allar will play Saturday continues to be unclear.

“I think he’s played enough football for us that, that timeline will go all the way up to the game, really,” Franklin said. “I do think from a practice perspective, no matter where we’re at on Tuesday, we’re going to have to get both of those guys reps, Tuesday and Wednesday. It’s too early to tell at this point.

“We’re going to have to have both guys ready. And, you could make the argument all three guys ready, which is challenging to do in a game week. Had some conversations with Danny [O’Brien] and Andy [Kotelnicki] about that already. But I do think Drew has played enough football that it will go all the way up to game time before we make that decision.”

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After the game, Franklin said he would not describe the Lions’ decision to sit Allar for the final 30 minutes as precautionary.

“It was, ‘Is he going to be mobile enough to give us a chance to run the offense?'” Franklin said. “After he got out there [to warm up] and got loosened up, Drew told me he couldn’t go.

“I asked him to be very, very honest with me, and he just didn’t feel like he was going to be able to move well enough to go. And even after the end of the half there, throwing was challenging.”

If Allar cannot start, the Lions will turn to Beau Pribula

Whether or not the undisclosed injury — Allar was wearing a brace on his left knee after halftime in Madison, for whatever that is worth, but shedded it for the Penn State postgame celebration — will continue to impact the quarterback’s mobility is undoubtedly one of the top factors Penn State will consider when it comes to whether or not he will face the Buckeyes. If he cannot go, backup Beau Pribula will start. He finished last weekend’s win for the Lions. Pribula completed 11 of 13 passes for 98 yards. He also added 26 rushing yards.

“I had a ton of confidence,” Franklin said of Pribula. “He’s a character kid with a character family, very talented. Some of his talents are different than what Drew’s are. So I think that’s one of the things. I think it’s really important as a staff and as an offensive coordinator, you got to be committed to calling the game differently. That’s easier said than done, right? And within our offensive scheme, play the strengths. And the stuff that I try to do is as a reminder, you know, Andy, obviously, is an experienced coordinator, but remind him, we’ve got to call the game now based on Beau’s strengths.

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“I thought we did that. Bo is a character, character, kid, character family. Comes from a great high school program. He’s universally respected in our locker room, from his teammates and coaches. Not surprised one bit that he was able to manufacture yards and points for us when we needed them most.”

Allar’s status will be the biggest talking point this week, of course. Stay tuned to Blue-White Illustrated for updates throughout the week. Franklin will next speak on the topic Wednesday. That news conference will come following a practice viewing window for the media.

Penn State-Ohio State is set for Noon ET Saturady on FOX.