Instant Analysis: Penn State is 6-0 following "Awesome Football Game" against USC
The Penn State Nittany Lions defeated the USC Trojans in a nail-biter 33-30 to advance to 6-0 on the season. Blue White Illustrated reporters Nate Bauer and Greg Pickel were at the game in Los Angeles and gave their thoughts about the matchup in our Instant Analysis series from the field at the Coliseum.
Penn State plays “Awesome Football Game” against USC
Our experts recap the game but, more importantly, admire how good the game was between USC and Penn State. Close games for Penn State have been rare over the last several seasons. USC pushed Penn State to the wire, and the team responded, which our experts discussed.
Several players stood out in the game but none had a bigger game than tight end Tyler Warren. The redshirt senior tight end caught 17 passes for 224 yards and a touchdown. Most notably, Warren scored a touchdown on a wild formation from Penn State offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki in which Warren started at quarterback, shifted to center, snapped the ball, and then caught a touchdown from Drew Allar on a reverse pass.
“A school record for tight ends and the second most yads for a Penn State football ever. That doesn’t even count what he’s doing in the running game,” Franklin said.
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“I’ve been talking about him being the best tight end in college football, but now he’s in the conversation for one of the best players in college football.”
Allar fights through adversity to lead a comeback win
One aspect we haven’t seen from this Penn State football team was its ability to come back from a deficit. The team found itself down by 14 points at halftime, which is its largest deficit of the season. Despite tossing two interceptions in the game, Allar fought back to have a defining drive of the season. Down seven, Allar marched the Nittany Lions 75-yards downfield for a touchdown with just over two minutes left in the game. Along the way, the junior quarterback converted two fourth downs to extend the drive and Penn State’s chances of remaining undefeated.
The defense got off to a rocky start, allowing USC’s playmakers to find space and points in the first half. However, the team’s trademark third-quarter dominance showed up again. The Penn State defense allowed just 59 yards in the third quarter after giving up 248 in the first half. They also limited USC to just three points off an Allar interception deep in its own territory.
Penn State remains undefeated and heads into its second bye week with a win.
