UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Three regular season games remain for Penn State who are set to clash with Purdue for the 21st time in program history. Ross-Ade Stadium will play host to the Nittany Lions and Boilermakers on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. on CBS.
Penn State (8-1) has won 10 consecutive games against Purdue dating back to 2005 and have won 16 of the last 18 contests over the 1-8 Boilermakers. The all-time series can be traced to 1951 which came as one of Purdue’s three wins over Penn State.
The Nittany Lions 35-6 White Out win over Washington on Nov. 9 closed as the second largest margin of victory and came in front of the ninth largest crowd in Beaver Stadium history. It also marked another signature performance for senior tight end Tyler Warren who further etched his name into the Penn State record books.
Warren surpassed former Nittany Lion Mike Gesicki as the single-season receptions and receiving yards leader for tight ends in Penn State history with 59 catches for 681 yards. The Mechanicsville, Virginia, native owns 20 career touchdowns which is most all-time by a tight end in program history and is one of three Big Ten tight ends since 1956 with three or more rushing touchdowns in a season.
“I just think it's a really good example that everybody's journey is different,” head coach James Franklin said. “Everybody's race is different. They all develop at different stages and speeds but he's been phenomenal, and right now it's not even a question that he's the best tight end in college football. You can make the argument he's one of the most impactful football players in all of college football.”
Saturday’s showdown will feature two talented quarterbacks in Purdue senior Hudson Card and Penn State junior Drew Allar. Card has thrown for eight touchdowns and 1,113 yards while Allar has 2,0006 passing yards for 13 touchdowns.
Allar is eighth nationally in passing efficiency and ninth in completion percentage at 70.3 percent. Allar is fourth in the Big Ten with a 80.2 QBR and is 19 passing yards from 5,000 in his Penn State career.
Allar is leading an offense that paces the conference in third down percentage and a group that’s averaging 444.7 yards per game. Franklin said he’s been impressed by Allar’s pocket presence and awareness of when to tuck the ball and take off for a run.
“I think Drew looks consistently comfortable and in control in the games,” Franklin said. “I think probably the biggest thing for him, that I've noticed, is his mobility. I think it's been a huge factor for him and for our offense, especially vertical scrambles up in the pocket. Stepping up and climbing the pocket has been big.”
The Penn State defense will be tasked with guarding Purdue’s leading rusher in junior running back Devin Mockobee and sophomore tight end Max Klare who leads the Boilermakers with 475 receiving yards.
It was a complete performance for the Nittany Lions secondary against Washington as the former held the Huskies to 119 passing yards. Penn State is 14th nationally in passing defense with 169.2 passing yards per game allowed and has found dominant play from senior safety Jaylen Reed who’s recorded an interception in three of the last four games.
Franklin also praised the steady veteran play of redshirt junior safety Zakee Wheatley, redshirt senior cornerback Jalen Kimber and sophomore cornerback A.J. Harris. Franklin said Harris hasn’t “scratched the surface” in his development and noted, “there's a ton left for him, and I think he's playing at a high level, but I think there's a ton left for improvement there. And I think Terry [Smith] is the right guy to coach him.”
“I feel like our confidence level is through the roof right now,” sophomore cornerback Elliot Washington II said of his fellow defensive backs. “I feel like we’re the best DB’s in the nation. We come in with the right mindset, we approach practice the same way, it doesn’t matter win or loss. We’ve come together as a team and we form a great bond.”