Nick Singleton shines in home debut, shows big-play threat
James Franklin has been waiting for Nick Singleton. Or, maybe more appropriately, the Penn State football program has needed a heavy hitter on offense for some time.
Saturday afternoon at Beaver Stadium, the Nittany Lions’ true freshman running back proved he’s up to the task.
Finishing with 10 carries for 179 yards in his home debut, Singleton cashed in with two touchdowns. The first went for 70 yards. The second, his last touch of the game, went for 44.
And at every point along the way in Penn State’s 46-10 win over Ohio, Singleton’s threat of a home run on one cut, one burst, and one blink came into fruition from the dazzling Pennsylvania product.
“He’s got such good speed that, maybe in years past when the read would be cloudy and you’d want to bounce it, we didn’t always have the speed to get to the edge like he does,” Franklin said. “And he showed the ability to do that. A run that may typically be three or four yards has a chance to be 80 with him.”
Nick Singleton’s explosive play potential
One week after a disappointing rushing performance for Penn State to open the season at Purdue, Singleton repeatedly demonstrated that to be true.
Starting with an 11-yard carry on his first touch of the game, Singleton notched his first explosive carry. But upon turning the corner on a run to his right, following Sal Wormley toward the Penn State sideline late in the first quarter, Singleton’s true potential shone.
Cutting back effortlessly behind his blocker, Singleton burst past a pair of colliding Ohio defenders and toward the end zone. Unable to catch up, the Bobcats could only watch as the running back delivered a 14-0 edge to Penn State.
First touchdown carry
The first such carry of the Nittany Lions’ 2022 season, it represented a departure the program has long awaited. Coming off a campaign in which big plays came at a premium, no Penn State running back exceeding a carry of 44 yards, teammates took note, particularly on the offensive line.
“It’s an amazing confidence booster,” backup tackle Bryce Effner said. “We can block as well as we can and a running back could still miss the gap. And it’s vice versa, too. We could block horribly and the running back could make an amazing play and still go another 20 yards… But when you see that, it’s alleviating to know that that’s possible.”
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Twice more on Saturday, Singleton would bring that reality into focus.
Opening the second half with possession, Singleton wasted no time in snapping Penn State fans back to attention as action resumed. Shooting through the heart of Ohio’s defense, his carry went 48 yards before he was finally brought down at the Bobcat 27-yard line.
And, again later in the third quarter with Penn State holding a 33-7 advantage, Singleton cashed in. Plodding to a 3- and 5-yard gain on his first two touches, a third-and-2 from the Ohio 44 was the charm.
Finding the edge in front of Penn State’s sideline once again, Singleton beat the Bobcat defenders, first to the sideline and then upfield and into the end zone. This time sending the Nittany Lions to a 40-7 lead, it’d be his last snap of the game.
Nick Singleton’s next steps
In the wake of a lackluster collective effort running the ball against the Boilermakers, Franklin wasn’t yet ready in the postgame to crown a lead back coming out of the game. But, in acknowledging that Singleton’s big runs were “needed,” by Penn State on Saturday afternoon, the impact on the program as a whole, as well as those outside the program, is unmistakable moving forward.
“I do think it has an impact, obviously not just on the rushing stats, but I think it has an impact on defensive coordinators when they know if they’re not in their gap or they make a mistake, that there’s a back on the other side that can go 80 yards at any point,” Franklin said. “There’s a lot of value in that and I think it affects how people call a defense, too.”
As Penn State improves on the season to a 2-0 start, Singleton’s impact is one the Nittany Lions will be counting on.
