{"id":66352,"date":"2024-10-16T09:00:56","date_gmt":"2024-10-16T13:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/?p=66352"},"modified":"2024-10-15T18:27:36","modified_gmt":"2024-10-15T22:27:36","slug":"all-coming-together-for-penn-state-offense","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2024\/10\/16\/all-coming-together-for-penn-state-offense\/","title":{"rendered":"All Coming Together for Penn State Offense"},"content":{"rendered":"

There is a lot for third-ranked Penn State to be happy about as the team enters its second bye week of the season. \u00a0All three new coordinators, Andy Kotelnicki (offense), Tom Allen (defense), and Justin Lustig (special teams) have their parts of the team playing very well. \u00a0Tyler Warren<\/a> has proven himself to be one of the best tight ends<\/a> in the nation. \u00a0In fact, he may be one of the best overall players in the nation. \u00a0However, quarterback Drew Allar<\/a> has been a constant who is not getting enough attention and accolades. \u00a0This season, it’s all coming together for the Penn State offense and Allar.<\/p>\n

All Coming Together for Penn State Offense<\/h2>\n

Who is Drew Allar?<\/h3>\n

Allar is in his second season as Penn State’s starting quarterback. \u00a0He is also working with his second offensive coordinator. \u00a0As a five-star recruit out of Medina, Ohio, Allar has had to shoulder high expectations<\/a> from the very beginning. \u00a0While he has statistically been solid, the main criticism about Allar is his ability to win the big games. \u00a0Critics point to the performances he’s had against the highest level competition, and that his stats were padded against lesser opponents.<\/p>\n

In a thrilling 33-30 overtime win over USC<\/a>, Allar showed a lot of development. \u00a0Not only were his statistics good, but he showed toughness and leadership. \u00a0He is known for his preparation, and that is starting to bear fruit on the field. \u00a0However, Penn State is in the midst of the toughest part of its schedule. \u00a0His ability to overcome the criticisms about not beating quality opponents will determine the team’s success this season. \u00a0In short, Allar is a talented quarterback with lingering questions about winning the big games.<\/p>\n

All Coming Together Statistically for Allar<\/h3>\n

Allar took the keys to the offense in 2023, and put up good statistics. \u00a0He played in all 13 of the team’s games, completing 59.9% of his passes for 2,631 yards with 26 touchdowns and only two interceptions. \u00a0However, it was a different story against top teams. \u00a0Facing Ohio State, he completed 18 of 42 passes (42.9%) for 191 yards and a touchdown. \u00a0Michigan held Allar to a 43.5% completion percentage, for only 70 yards and a touchdown. \u00a0In the Peach Bowl against Ole Miss, Allar completed 48.7% of his throws for 291 yards, with two touchdowns and an interception.<\/p>\n

This season, his statistics are continuing to progress. \u00a0With Kotelnicki entering the picture, and with Allar’s continued maturation as a quarterback, players like tight end Warren, receiver Trey Wallace<\/a>, and running backs Nick Singleton<\/a> and Kaytron Allen<\/a> have been the beneficiaries. \u00a0Through the first six games, Allar has completed over 70% of his passes for 1,492 yards with 11 touchdowns and four interceptions.<\/p>\n

In the win over USC, Allar threw three interceptions. \u00a0While that number eclipsed his interception total for all of last season, his continued development as a quarterback showed. \u00a0Last year, he would have been conservative through the game, minimizing mistakes. \u00a0However, Penn State’s coaches and fans would much rather see the current version of Allar. \u00a0Against the Trojans, he was poised in the second half. \u00a0He avoided the pass rush, was strong in the pocket, and trusted his teammates. \u00a0In the pivotal fourth quarter, he delivered two clutch throws to Julian Fleming<\/a>, who had a bad drop earlier on. \u00a0This all bodes well for Allar and the team with its tougher upcoming schedule.<\/p>\n

Running the Ball<\/h3>\n

Throwing the ball well comes naturally for Allar. \u00a0However, he is showing his ability to run the ball as well. \u00a0This has been shown through necessity (avoiding pass rushers) as well as through design (planned runs). \u00a0His continued development as a runner contributes to it all coming together for Allar.<\/p>\n

In his career, Allar has 122 carries for 379 yards. \u00a0He has also scored eight touchdowns. \u00a0This season he has carried only six times, but half of those carries have resulted in three touchdowns. \u00a0Allar will never be mistaken for a run-first quarterback, but his running ability creates optionality. \u00a0Kotelnicki has proven to be a great play-caller, especially when he has such optionality to work with. \u00a0Backup Beau Pribula<\/a> is more of a running threat at the quarterback position, but Allar has proven his ability to hold his own in this area.<\/p>\n

Leadership<\/h3>\n

A mostly unwritten part of a quarterback’s job description is leadership. \u00a0The quarterback is an extension of the coaching staff. \u00a0Allar has succeeded in the leadership department and was named one of the team’s six captains this season. \u00a0At the time, head coach James Franklin talked about the respect that everyone on the team has for Allar. \u00a0He has shown leadership both on and off the field.<\/p>\n

Over the past offseason, Allar dedicated himself to leading the Nittany Lions. \u00a0He dove into a new playbook with a new offensive coordinator. \u00a0He also dedicated himself to strength and conditioning. \u00a0While he dropped 10 pounds, he has been a more powerful runner this year. \u00a0This development helps the team by providing that optionality that Kotelnicki does well with. \u00a0It also shows the dedication of one of the captains.<\/p>\n

The greatest tests of Allar’s leadership, and abilities on the field, are yet to come. \u00a0Penn State’s next game, coming off their second and last bye, is in Wisconsin against a Badgers team that just dismantled Rutgers 42-7. \u00a0Wisconsin will be looking to make a statement against the #3 team in the nation. \u00a0Allar will need to ensure the team doesn’t look past them to what is looming the following week. \u00a0Returning home to Happy Valley, Penn State will welcome Ohio State. \u00a0Penn State will not win those games if they fail to get off to a good start. \u00a0That issue has plagued the team this season. \u00a0Allar will need to be at the forefront of reversing that trend.<\/p>\n

The Big Ten standings will be on the line. \u00a0A potential spot in the College Football Playoffs will be on the line. \u00a0Additionally, Drew Allar will have the chance to prove it’s all coming together for him. \u00a0It’s time.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There is a lot for third-ranked Penn State to be happy about as the team enters its second bye week of the season. \u00a0All three new coordinators, Andy Kotelnicki (offense), Tom Allen (defense), and Justin Lustig (special teams) have their parts of the team playing very well. \u00a0Tyler Warren has proven himself to be one […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5172,"featured_media":66369,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"1","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5,2],"tags":[32817,7983,5250,837,4805,309,7449,7524],"class_list":["post-66352","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bigten","category-featured","tag-andy-kotelnicki","tag-big-ten-football","tag-bye-week","tag-james-franklin","tag-leadership","tag-penn-state-nittany-lions","tag-penn-state-offense","tag-penn-state-quarterbacks"],"modified_by":"Kate Pearson Halyburton, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66352","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5172"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=66352"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66352\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/66369"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=66352"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=66352"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=66352"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}