Final Takeaways From Penn State's Win Over UCLA

James Franklin brought up a unique stat, one with plenty of subtext, after the Nittany Lions beat UCLA.

Penn State running back Kaytron Allen (13) carries the ball during the fourth quarter against the UCLA Bruins at Beaver Stadium. / Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

Penn State coach James Franklin waded deep into the anxious waters of expectation Saturday afternoon. Following the Nittany Lions' 27-11 win over UCLA, Franklin brought up a statistic charged with subtext and requiring context: Penn State is the only FBS team to start each of the last four seasons with a 5-0 record.

Actually, the Nittany Lions extended that streak by one, having become the only team to reach 4-0 in each of the past four seasons by beating Illinois in the spontaneous "White Out" a week before. Franklin announced the stat as a positive. Others might interpret it differently. And that's the essence of Penn State's 2024 football season.

Following the past two years, and particularly after going 0-6 vs. Ohio State and Michigan since 2021, the Nittany Lions aren't playing solely their 2024 schedule. They're also confronting a separate schedule of expectation and apprehension, one unimpressed with 16-point victories over one-win teams.

Fans culled this parallel schedule from three years of aching climb and inevitable slip. Penn State has been a top-10 team at some point every year since 2021, but the College Football Playoff eluded it those three years.

So does this year's 5-0 start represent a step forward or another sprint to Lucy holding the football? No. 4 Penn State won't answer that definitively Saturday at USC, where it's a 3-point favorite in its first Big Ten road game of the season. But the team has an opportunity to course-correct the conversation away from, "James Franklin can't win the big game." And even if it loses (like four AP top-10 teams did Saturday), Penn State, like other playoff contenders, has more margin for error to answer the question again.

Before facing UCLA, the Penn State coach said this: "We can't chase ghosts. We've got to prepare for what we've seen." Franklin was talking specifically about facing UCLA backup quarterback Justyn Martin (which happened). But the reference can be applied to Penn State's season in general, in which the team is chasing ghosts — some uncontrollable, some materialized by recent history.

That said, is Penn State ready for USC? Final takeaways from the Nittany Lions' win over UCLA.

RELATED: What they said after Penn State's win over the Bruins

Where is Penn State's run game without Nicholas Singleton?

For the first time in their three seasons together, Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton did not share carries in Penn State's backfield. That's because Singleton, the Nittany Lions' most dynamic back, missed the first game of his career with an undisclosed injury.

"It definitely felt weird not to have my dog out there," Allen said.

How close was Singleton to playing? Franklin said that the junior was a late scratch Saturday —following pregame warmups, actually. Allen sounded confident ("I know he's going to be ready next week," he said), but Franklin likely won't update Singleton's status until after practice Wednesday, if at all.

It would be surprising if Singleton misses a second straight game. But if he does, Penn State must find a better workaround. The Nittany Lions rushed for 85 yards, their first game under 200 yards this season and their lowest total since getting 49 at Ohio State last year. Allen played a season-high 51 snaps, tied a career-high with 21 carries and totaled 78 yards. He lost five yards on those carries, more than he had in the first four games combined (three).

Allen wasn't happy with his day. "I know it could be better," he said. But Allen also didn't have his counterpoint. Singleton and Allen are so effective together because they stress different parts of the defense. Allen wearies it, Singleton can run through, past or around it. Together, they force conflict and change, even when they aren't on the field together.

USC's run defense is vulnerable. The Trojans rank 17th in the Big Ten, allowing 158.6 yards per game, and gave up 144 to Minnesota's Darius Taylor in a 24-17 loss Saturday. The week off should help Singleton and Allen be ready to attack that together.

Penn State running back Nicholas Singleton walks off the field following the Nittany Lions' game against the UCLA Bruins at Beaver Stadium. / Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

Is Penn State's offense really "starting slow"?

Erratic is a better word. Penn State was imprecise at the beginning against UCLA, producing its first game-opening three-and-out of the season. And the first quarter has been Penn State's lowest-scoring (21 points in five games).

Some of this is circumstance and happenstance. Quarterback Drew Allar fumbled on the opening drive against West Virginia, which he said was clapping his cadence. Against Kent State, the Nittany Lions moved the ball crisply before Beau Pribula was intercepted trying to flip a short pass to Tyler Warren.

Mostly, the issue has been situational rhythm. Against UCLA, for instance, Allar had receiver Julian Fleming open on a second-down route but missed the throw. "I could have helped Julian out a bit more," the quarterback said. Ultimately, he found his groove, completing 10 consecutive passes on scoring drives of the second and third quarters to finish 17 for 24.

"When we got our rhythm going, we were hard to stop," Allar said. "It’s just about getting into a rhythm quicker."

Does Penn State have a No. 1 receiver? Does it need one?

Yes, and it's tight end Tyler Warren. But what about the receivers themselves? Tre Wallace broke quickly from the gate, catching five passes for a career-high 117 yards and two touchdowns against West Virginia. He got nine of the 18 passing targets in the game. Since then, Wallace has nine catches for 113 yards in four games.

That's not necessarily negative. Liam Clifford, Julian Fleming and Omari Evans gradually have elevated their play, giving Allar more reliable reads. Clifford caught three timely passes, all on third down, for a career-high 107 yards against UCLA. That included a 57-yard deep shot Allar normally throws to Evans. Meanwhile, Allar targeted Fleming five times (though they connected just twice) while keeping his eye on Warren (three catches, 29 yards).

Penn State doesn't run deep at receiver. It's a four-player group with Wallace, Fleming, Clifford and Evans. But the rotation means Allar has options, game-to-game and even play-to-play.

"Even if they’re not labeled as deep threats, they can do a lot in the receiving game," Allar said. "... We have a lot of playmakers in that room who can do a lot of different things, and it’s about Coach K [offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki] and the staff putting them in position to make those types of plays and them me delivering the ball on time and on target for them to show off their abilities."

Noteworthy

Tyler Warren scored his 17th career touchdown, breaking Pat Freiermuth's program record for tight ends.

Linebacker Tony Rojas (career-high eight tackles) looked as confident as he has all season. Rojas made four of his six solo tackles in the first half.

Penn State's defense has held four consecutive Big Ten opponents, dating to last season, to under 100 yards (UCLA had 93). Penn State ranks second in the Big Ten, and sixth nationally, in run defense (76.2 yards per game). It also has not allowed a third-quarter point.

Last word

Penn State and Pitt both are 5-0. The last time that happened? The epic 1981 season, when Todd Blackledge led the Nittany Lions to a 48-14 win over the No. 1 Panthers. Penn State went 10-2 and finished No. 3. Pitt went 11-1 and finished 4th.

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