Highs & Lows: Penn State cruises past Golden Flashes

By Nate Bauer

After a first-quarter miscue, Penn State rolled to a 56-0 win over Kent State on Saturday afternoon at Beaver Stadium. With the win, the Nittany Lions improved to 3-0 on the season and now turn to Big Ten play next weekend.

Here is a look at the high and low moments from the game:

Highs & Lows: Penn State 56 – Kent State 0

PLAYER OF THE GAME If Penn State had drawn up an ideal performance, one demonstrating earned strides from his 2023 campaign, quarterback Drew Allar’s afternoon against Kent State would have come close. Completing 17 of 21 passes for 309 yards and three touchdowns, the stats were only part of the story. Rather, his precision, timely playmaking, decision-making, and toughness were all on display during the course of the Nittany Lions’ rout over the Golden Flashes. 

PLAY OF THE GAME The play appeared straightforward enough. Allar to Liam Clifford for the latter’s first touchdown as a Nittany Lion. But, the late first-half connection was made possible by Clifford turning back for the pass and taking it away from the Kent State defender. The score lifted Penn State to a 21-0 advantage heading into the half.

BEST PASS Penn State’s half-ending touchdown drive was made possible by back-to-back elite passes from quarterback Drew Allar to Trey Wallace and Julian Fleming, respectively. The first, a video game-like bullet to the sideline from the opposite hash, moved Penn State toward midfield with a 16-yard pickup. The second, a patient missile directed to a Fleming post between the hashes, picked up another 39 yards. 

Offensive superlatives

WORST PASS Absorbing pressure from a collapsing pocket, Beau Pribula’s short dump-off to Tyler Warren early in the first quarter ended in disaster. Kent State defensive end Kameron Olds slipped in front of the pass and converted a stress-free interception. The play returned possession to the Golden Flashes in the 0-0 game.

BEST RUN Jonesing to open up a four touchdown lead heading into the halftime locker room, Allar’s 5-yard keeper again demonstrated his mettle. Running to the right sideline with no obvious path into the end zone, the Nittany Lion signal-caller barrelled his way across the goalline to give his side a 28-0 lead.

BEST CATCH An overthrown pass wasn’t enough to deter true freshman tight end Luke Reynolds from making, arguably, the best catch of the year for the Nittany Lions. Jumping out of the building, the pass from Beau Pribula to the right hash was snagged by Reynolds, who tumbled to the ground to complete the 19-yard connection.

WORST DROP Not that the play was particularly consequential, but a Tommy Ulatowski pass to Chrishon McCray was perfectly placed in the flat late in the third quarter. Unable to wrangle the reception, though, the ball fell straight to the Beaver Stadium turf, eventually leading to another three-and-out for the Golden Flashes.

Defensive standouts

BEST SACK This is a two-parter, as the second play of the game delivered two of the most vicscious hits of the afternoon. Turning the corner from Kent State quarterback Devin Kargman’s blind side, Dani Dennis-Sutton leveled the quarterback, forcing him out of the game with an injury. 

BEST HIT Just after the hit on Kargman, the ball floating aimlessly, Penn State linebacker Kobe King was blasted by tight end Charlie Skehan. The hit was tenacious and reviewed for targeting and, after a remaining in the game briefly, King was pulled and wouldn’t see the field again the rest of the afternoon. 

Not to be outdone, true freshman Max Granville delivered a big hit on Kent State’s third-string quarterback midway through the fourth quarter. Scooped up by fellow freshman Antoine Belgrave-Shorter, the fumble-six was reviewed and called back as an incompletion.

Special teams highlights

BEST EFFORT A late second-quarter punt to Kaden Saunders looked like an opportunity for a return. Kent State’s C.J. Young, a bullet streaking up the field, had other ideas. Despite Saunders’ receving of the punt and making a move, Young clipped his ankles to stop the play in its tracks.

WORST KICK Penn State kicker Gabe Nwosu did the thing kickoff specialists can’t do to open the game. His initial offering saled well out of bounds down the Nittany Lions’ sideline, giving Kent State possession at the 35 yard line to begin the game.

BEST RETURN Struggling on his first two punt returns, including one coughed up, Kaden Saunders got another crack at it in the fourth quarter. With Jake Spencer unable to better Saunders’ performance, an opportunity eventually opened up when Saunders sliced 23 yards up the field to give the Nittany Lions the ball at their 33-yard line.

Wrapping up

BEST DECISION Drew Allar to Tyler Warren is a connection that carried over through the bye week. And, it served up one of the quarterback’s nicest throws of the afternoon. Quickly identifying his target on a first-and-10 from the 16-yard line late in the first quarter, Allar found his tight end freed up on the left hash, hitting him in stride for the pitch and catch touchdown. The strike gave the Nittany Lions a 7-0 lead.

WORST DECISION Jven Williams’ first extended run at left tackle of the 2024 season didn’t go well. Within one series, the redshirt freshman was charged with a hold that negated a long run for Cam Wallace and followed it up with a personal foul penalty for retaliating on a hit on Beau Pribula, moving the Nittany Lions back another 15 yards. 

MOST TELLING MOMENT The damage had already been done by Penn State’s first-half-ending touchdown drive. But, getting the ball back to open the second half, the Nittany Lions had an opportunity to go back-to-back, and did. Turning to Kaytron Allen for a heavy dose of the run, three plays was enough for Allar to air out a bomb to a streaking Omari Evans deep down the field. The connection went for 59 yards and a touchdown to give Penn State a 35-0 advantage.

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