No. 15 Penn State football displays balanced attack in dominant victory over Indiana
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - No amount of wind in Memorial Stadium could shake Penn State’s focus on maintaining balance in a 45-14 victory over the Indiana Hoosiers.
The Nittany Lions' defense and secondary preyed on the Hoosiers' offense with six sacks, 16 tackles for loss and three interceptions. Indiana’s revolving door of quarterbacks required the defensive line to adjust accordingly to each quarterback’s style.
“We had to maintain the pocket more because he liked to run a lot,” defensive end Chop Robinson said about redshirt sophomore quarterback Dexter Williams III.
Of Penn State’s 483 total yards, running back duo Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen accounted for a combined 159 yards and four touchdowns, which tied the freshman touchdown record.
“Whenever you can bring balance to an offense, it’s fantastic,” sixth-year quarterback Sean Clifford said. “Both Kaytron [Allen] and Nick [Singleton] had good days.”
Clifford praised Allen in particular, for his progress since signing with the Nittany Lions in December 2021.
“He’s the most improved player I think I’ve seen in probably my career from such a short time,” Clifford said.
Clifford threw for 229 yards against the Hoosiers, positioning himself just 16 yards shy of former quarterback Trace McSorley’s passing record of 9,899 yards. It’s expected Clifford will pass the mark in Beaver Stadium versus Maryland on Nov. 12.
Regarding the buzz surrounding the starting quarterback question, Franklin stated that he and his staff based the decision to start Clifford over freshman Drew Allar on their observations in practice and knowledge of both athletes’ skills.
“It wasn’t a lot of dialogue,” Franklin said. “It was one discussion that we had, and after that, we just went back to our normal operation.”
Clifford withdrew in the third quarter to give Allar game time reps. When it comes to play calling, redshirt senior offensive lineman Bryce Effner mentioned that Allar’s focus in the huddle is all business when the five-star takes the field.
“When you’re in the game, it’s 100 percent of your focus,” Effner said. “It’s what you live and breathe to do.”
He emphasized that building a cohesive unit with a “no mistakes, no excuses” mentality as an offensive line has been a major focus since the offseason.
Rather than practicing with a select group of starters, Effner explained that offensive line coach Phil Trautwein rotates between seven and eight players within the line to develop depth at the tackle, guard and center positions.
Preparation for Indiana did not include a playlist, according to Effner, in an effort to encourage team building. With no music to keep up morale throughout practice, players brought the energy themselves and fed off of one another after major stops or well-executed plays.
Franklin attributed the blowout victory to the blue and white’s overarching goal of balancing position development on both sides of the football.
“What we’re trying to do is try to build a team in a program that we’re hitting on all cylinders at every position all the time,” Franklin said.
Emma Holtz is a junior majoring in public relations. To contact her, email emma.holtz01@gmail.com.
