Penn State started off slow against Kent State, scoring just once on their first three possessions. A botched screen pass by Beau Pribula and a missed third down kept things close deep into the second quarter. Drew Allar engineered an impressive touchdown drive to take the lead in between those failed drives, but Kent State was holding strong.
Eventually, however, the floodgates opened for Penn State. They scored on three consecutive drives of 75 yards or more, moving down the field with ease on the ground and through the air. Kent State meanwhile could get nothing going on offense, especially after seeing two of their quarterbacks go down with injuries.
It was 28-0 at halftime, and things never got better for the Golden Flashes. Penn State kicked off the second half with a bang on a 59-yard touchdown pass from Drew Allar to Omari Evans.
Allars’ day was over after that drive, finishing with 309 yards and three touchdowns through the air on just 21 attempts. He added another score on the ground for good measure to close the first half. Backup quarterback Beau Pribula would engineer three touchdown drives of his own, hitting Khalil Dinkins for a score, handing off to Cam Wallace for his first career touchdown, and taking one in himself on the ground to finish the scoring.
Penn State’s defense was dominant throughout the game, never allowing Kent State to come anywhere close to the endzone. Abdul Carter finally had a big day, getting his first sack of the season and spending plenty of time in the Kent State backfield.
Dani Dennis-Sutton had a sack-fumble on the second play from scrimmage, with Kent State starting QB Devin Kargman leaving the game with an injury following the hit. The backup QBs couldn’t get the passing game going, with Penn State allowing just 18 yards passing on 13 attempts.
Kent State tried to establish the run game, but they ran into brick wall after brick wall, gaining just 49 yards on 30 carries. It was as thorough a beating as you will see in college football this season as Penn State won 56-0.
Penn State’s stars shined in this game, with seemingly everybody getting involved on offense and defense. Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen combined for 147 yards on 22 carries, Omari Evans racked up 116 yards and a score, and Tyler Warren scored twice including a passing touchdown to Nick Singleton.
It felt like Penn State could do now wrong. They even broke their record for offensive yards that had stood since a 1926 game against Susquehanna University, finishing with 718 total yards. It was exactly the kind of day they needed after a disappointing showing against Bowling Green in Week 2.
Even with the lower level of competition, this game showed how much better the offense could potentially be this season under offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki. The offensive line was as dominant as they should have been against a small front seven, and all the playmakers had their moments.
The defense looked much better as well, swarming to the ball and harassing the Kent State QBs every chance they had. Only time will tell if it will carry over into conference play, but James Franklin and the rest of the coaching staff have to be happy with how the team performed this week.
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