Penn State 63, Delaware 7: What We Learned From a Blowout

Penn State's backs score 4 TDs, and Drew Allar is coldly efficient in the Lions' huge victory.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. | Nicholas Singleton rushed for a career-high three touchdowns, Kaytron Allen topped 100 yards rushing, quarterback Drew Allar topped a 70-percent completion rate for the second consecutive game and No. 7 Penn State routed Delaware 63-7 on Saturday at Beaver Stadium. The Lions (2-0) also extended their run of scoring 30 or more points to nine games, the nation's longest such streak.

Singleton scored all three of his touchdowns in the first half, when Penn State scored on five of its six possessions. Meanwhile, fellow back Kaytron Allen produced his third career 100-yard game, gaining 103 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries.

What else did we learn about Penn State? The breakdown from Beaver Stadium.

The Coldly Efficient Allar

The Penn State quarterback's second start was as good as his first, even if he didn't produce big numbers. Allar completed 22 of 26 passes for 204 yards and a touchdown with methodical efficiency. He delivered completion streaks of 13 and eight passes, finishing the first half with a 2-minute drill on which he completed four consecutive passes and ran for a touchdown. Through two games, Allar's completion rate is 78 percent. Quite a start.

The Turning Point

Penn State's unique first series highlighted the dynamic situation in the backfield. Allen started over Singleton, a few days after Franklin went out of his way to express how "blessed" his team is to have Allen. It was no idle statement. In the portal era, roster retention is a 12-month job. Even after a big opening-week win, Franklin had to practice roster management.

So there was Allen, driving the Lions' offense downfield, losing a few snaps to Singleton after recovering his fumble and getting back on the field for a T-formation play in short yardage. The ball could have gone to either Allen or Singleton, who were aligned right and left of tight end Khalil Dinkins. The handoff went to Singleton, who scored the first of his three touchdowns. And future defenses got another look at a nearly indefensible look. Franklin wants to do more than tell people he has two starting backs; he's going to demonstrate it, particularly against a team like Delaware.

Redemption

Linebacker Dom DeLuca dropped a potential pick-6 in the first half that would have been Penn State's first interception of the season. Given another shot in the third quarter, DeLuca capitalized, scoring from 26 yards on his first career interception. DeLuca is one of the roster's great stories, a former walk-on from Wyoming Area (Pa.) High who earned a scholarship in 2022 and was voted a team captain this year. Further, the touchdown was the first DeLuca scored since the 2019 PIAA Class 3A championship game, when he took in a quarterback sneak to lead Wyoming Area to the state title.

Cause for Concern

Delaware began its third offensive series with minus-1 yards of offense on six plays. Then it pulled off the longest run against Penn State in nearly a year. The Blue Hens' Marcus Yarns charged through a big cutback hole and outraced Penn State's secondary for a 66-yard touchdown run in the first quarter. It was the longest run Penn State has allowed since Michigan's Donovan Edwards scored from 67 yards last season. And Yarns could have been stopped for a short gain, had linebacker Tyler Elsdon filled the gap.

"We had the one play where we were not gap sound. The ball found that gap," Penn State coach James Franklin said. "They've got sometalented guys that can run, so just a really good example that everybody's got to do their job on a consistent basis."

Marcus Yarns is OFF TO THE RACES! 💨

TOUCHDOWN @Delaware_FB!

📺 @peacock pic.twitter.com/hU1VJLUaQZ

— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) September 9, 2023

Pitch Counts

Penn State's offensive line rotated quickly and significantly, getting starters Olu Fashanu and Hunter Nourzad off the field as quickly as possible. No need for Fashanu to play in that heat, and Nourzad has been nursing a minor early season injury that didn't prevent him from starting. But Penn State quickly replaced Fashanu with Drew Shelton, who played left tackle last season in Fashanu's absence, and Nourzad with No. 2 center Nick Dawkins, who saw the most reps of his career.

Meanwhile, Penn State essentially started its third-string left guard in Vega Ioane, a players offensive line coach Phil Trautwein says has NFL potential. Ioane started in place of JB Nelson, who got the season-opening start after Landon Tengwall announced his medical retirement.

Up Next

Penn State plays its first road game, visiting Illinois on Sept. 16 in a noon kickoff on Fox. However, the location of FOX's Big Noon Kickoff pregame show has changed.

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