STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Despite a slow start, No. 7 Penn State won with relative ease against UCLA in a 27-11 victory on Saturday at Beaver Stadium.
The Bruins, playing without injured starting quarterback Ethan Garbers, had few answers offensively for most of the day. Backup Justyn Martin made his first start and completed 22 of 30 passes for 167 yards in a noon ET game (9 a.m. PT) that was the first Big Ten road trip for UCLA, which did not score a touchdown until the final minute.
After an opening win at West Virginia, Penn State (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten) has navigated a month of home games building up to next week’s showdown on the road against No. 11 USC. Here are some initial takeaways from Penn State’s win against the Bruins (1-4, 0-3):
Penn State cruised, but it took too long to get rolling
James Franklin said this week he wanted his team to take a step forward without needing it to happen after a loss. To its credit, Penn State won with little doubt, but letting UCLA — which flew across the country Friday and played with a backup quarterback — hang around for a half wasn’t necessarily what you’d expect from a team with College Football Playoff expectations.
UCLA’s defense was able to hold the Penn State offense to punts on the Nittany Lions’ first two possessions. Martin, making his first collegiate start, led an 11-play, 46-yard drive on the Bruins’ first possession. But rather than attempting a field goal from the Penn State 23, the drive was thwarted by a stop from safety Zakee Wheatley on fourth-and-1.
Zakee Wheatley with a B1G stop for @PennStateFball on fourth down ‼️#B1GFootball on FOX 📺 pic.twitter.com/oLzQQODDDp
— Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) October 5, 2024
Penn State’s offense came to life in part because of big plays from wide receiver Liam Clifford. The younger brother of former starting quarterback Sean Clifford entered Saturday with just five catches this season, but he had three catches for 107 yards against the Bruins. All were big plays to convert third downs on scoring drives: a 26-yard catch on third-and-11 leading to Penn State’s first touchdown in the second quarter, a 24-yard catch on third-and-4 leading to Penn State’s second touchdown in the second quarter and a 57-yard catch on third-and-8 leading to Penn State’s final points on a field goal in the fourth quarter.
Penn State led just 7-3 deep into the second quarter, but Drew Allar and the offense stepped up with an eight-play, 75-yard drive capped by a 5-yard touchdown pass to tight end Tyler Warren. When Penn State needed to, the offense put together the kind of drives it needed to calm down the home crowd of more than 110,000. The Nittany Lions led 14-3 at halftime and tacked on a field goal on the opening possession of the third quarter, with the game officially feeling out of reach when Kaytron Allen punched in a 1-yard touchdown with 2:57 left in the third quarter.
Allar completed 17 of 24 passes for 237 yards and a touchdown. He had a 1-yard rushing touchdown on a sneak in the second quarter. Penn State’s defense held UCLA to 260 yards, 73 of which came on a 16-play drive that took more than half of the fourth quarter.
Drew Allar hits Tyler Warren late in the first half 🔥
They extend the lead for @PennStateFball 🤝#B1GFootball on FOX 📺 pic.twitter.com/csBAcAJbrQ
— Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) October 5, 2024
This never felt like a game the Nittany Lions were in jeopardy of losing, but for a team that was a 28.5-point favorite, it wasn’t the kind of throttling one expected.
How injuries impacted Penn State
Running back Nicholas Singleton was not present during the media portion of practice on Wednesday and was listed on the pregame availability report as questionable. He dressed but did not play in what turned out to be Penn State’s lowest rushing output of the season by far.
Throughout the game Singleton was on the sideline in pads but didn’t have his helmet on. Allen started, and freshman Quinton Martin Jr., who opened the season as the fourth back, operated as the backup. Martin was back deep on kick returns in Singleton’s place. If Singleton was healthy enough to dress and warm up, in all likelihood Penn State wanted to be cautious with him knowing what’s at stake next week at USC. Penn State is already without Cam Wallace, the No. 3 running back, who has a long-term injury.
Without Singleton, Penn State was held to 85 rushing yards, its first time under 200 yards this season. The Nittany Lions entered Saturday averaging 251 rushing yards per game, ranking No. 9 nationally. Allen grinded out 78 yards on 21 carries with a long of 11 yards. Martin had just one carry for 1 yard but caught three passes for 18 yards.
Starting right tackle Anthony Donkoh exited in the first quarter and did not return. Donkoh was clutching his left shoulder and was visibly in pain as he continued trying to lift his arm above his head. Trainers put a harness on his shoulder and he remained on the sideline but did not return. Nolan Rucci replaced him at right tackle for the remainder of the game.
Receiver and punt returner Kaden Saunders was ruled out for the game and was spotted on the sideline with his left foot in a walking boot. Sophomore cornerback Zion Tracy and walk-on Jake Spencer each had a crack at return duties. Tracy figures to be the long-term solution if Saunders is out for an extended period.
Penn State continues playing without starting safety Kevin Winston Jr., who is dealing with a long-term injury. Wheatley stepped up with seven tackles, including the crucial early fourth-down stop.
Did Penn State solve its kicking problem?
A week after Sander Sahaydak missed a pair of 40-yard field goals against Illinois, the Nittany Lions made a change.
Redshirt freshman Ryan Barker nailed field goals of 25 and 40 yards — the first two field goals of his career — and also converted on all extra points. It appears it will be Barker’s job moving forward ahead of Sahaydak, who is just 3-for-9 on field goals in his college career. Barker walked onto the team out of Landenberg, Pa.
(Photo of Drew Allar: Matthew O’Haren / Imagn Images)
