UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Saturday's first-ever clash with Delaware showcased the potency of the Penn State rushing attack. The electrifying sophomore duo of Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen found the end zone a combined four times on the afternoon as the pair spearheaded the ground game. Singleton tallied a career-high three rushing touchdowns and Allen amassed 103 rushing yards and a touchdown. Adding in 59 yards from redshirt senior Trey Potts, the brotherhood of Penn State's trio of accomplished running backs was on full display Saturday afternoon.
A dangerous run attack, with physicality by the front five in the trenches and strong blocking by tight ends and wide receivers, Penn State found a rhythm on the offensive side of the ball with the run game as the catalyst. When the final buzzer sounded, the Nittany Lions totaled 315 rushing yards from a variety of different sources.
"We pose a big threat with obviously Drew [Allar]," Singleton said. "He's big, he can throw the ball, he can run the ball, we have good receivers and tight ends too that can catch on the field and obviously me and Kaytron [Allen] you saw today so the offense does really good."
The run game allowed the offense to find its consistency and as Allar illustrated, "we kept our foot on the gas pedal." Singleton, Allen and Potts were full throttle on Saturday afternoon, taking what the offensive line provided and tallying big play after big play.
Allar also demonstrated how eliminating mistakes were key for the Nittany Lions on Saturday as a clean game created situations for the duo to run wild. With Allar as the conductor, Allen and Singleton were playing along to the same song and the sophomore quarterback recognized how the patience from the duo was crucial.
"I'm not sure what they're averages were but they probably had to average near five yards a carry a piece," Allar said. "The offensive line did outstanding. I know Kaytron [Allen] on a couple of those plays, especially going down at the end of the half, was very patient and made some crazy cuts that not many backs in the country can make. Obviously, Nick [Singleton] is just an explosive runner but I think they both did a really good job today."
The pair of highly-touted running backs share a unique connection both on and off the field as their relationship as roommates translates to the field. As a whole, the running back room has developed a brotherhood as Singleton called Potts, a transfer from Minnesota who averaged 8.4 yards a carry on Saturday, "a workhorse."
Singleton and Allen comprise one of the top running back duos in the country that comes with no egos from either player. The pair have learned that sharing touches is an instrumental element to the team's success as they strive to make each other better and model different parts of their game after one another.
Allen outlined how he's embraced running "angry" and has learned to trust the process of improvement by following co-offensive coordinator/running backs coach Ja'Juan Seider's message of, "get one percent better each and every week," as stated by Allen. For Singleton, improvement has come in slowing down and allowing the game to come to him so his speed and finesse can create explosive plays.
"Everybody in the running back room, we all feed off each other and we all give each other information so everybody says something on what they're seeing and we listen to each other and make sure we're doing the right thing," Allen said.
Singleton shared how Allen has "opened up his shell" and been more outgoing in practice and around the facility. Allen further explained how he, "will never be satisfied," a key element to how he continues to improve despite eclipsing 1,000 career rushing yards on Saturday.
Managing the workload of two powerful running backs is something head coach James Franklin is familiar with. Franklin knows how the size, physicality and speed Singleton and Allen possess provides a different dimension to the offense and how they're ability to change the complexity of the game creates uncertainty for opposing teams.
"I think defensive coordinators moving forward, you're in a tougher spot," Franklin said. "You got two running backs that can be challenging and you got a quarterback that's shown that he'll do it and can make the throws and make the plays. There's enough evidence out there that as a defensive coordinator, you're questioning what is our model for beating Penn State in terms of our offense."
