The final month of the regular season is shaping up to be a big one for the future of Penn State football. While still playing for the possibility of a 10-2 season that can wiggle Penn State into position for a spot in a New Years Six bowl game, the more important thing to keep on your radar ins the development of some of Penn State’s key members in the Class of 2022 and 2021 as they continue to get their opportunities.
If it wasn’t already clear enough, Penn State’s running game is now firmly in the hands of its talented freshmen [autotag]Kaytron Allen[/autotag] and [autotag]Nick Singleton[/autotag]. Singleton leads the team in rushing with 679 yards and Allen is second with 558 yards, and each has a team-high eight rushing touchdowns. The only other player with a rushing touchdown this season is sixth-year quarterback [autotag]Sean Clifford[/autotag].
Freshman linebacker [autotag]Abdul Carter[/autotag], a semifinalist for the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award, is third on the team in total tackles and sacks to show why the future looks so bright for him in the signature No. 11 jersey. Defensive end [autotag]Dani Dennis-Sutton[/autotag] has the team-lead for sacks this season and he came up with his first career interception in Penn State’s road win at Indiana in Week 10.
And then, of course, there is the quarterback. [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] got about a quarter and a half to really run the offense against the Hoosiers, but he wasn’t there to simply run off the clock as much as possible. Allar was given the chance to read defenses, make adjustments where needed, and throw the football to move the chains and put points on the board. And few would argue he handled things very well.
But not to be overlooked was the performance of freshman offensive lineman [autotag]Drew Shelton[/autotag]. Without Olu Fashanue available for the road trip to Bloomington, Shelton was put to the task of protecting Clifford (and later Allar), and he shined in the role.
“Not only did he play, he played well,” head coach James Franklin said after the road win when asked about Shelton’s performance according to Frank Bodani of the York Daily Record.
Penn State is in a fortunate position with the schedule to be able to get good playing time for their young players who will be the core of the team in 2023 and beyond. The schedule is favorable in that the remaining opponents — Maryland, Michigan State, and Rutgers — should all be underdogs against Penn State, and two of the games will be played at home, and the Spartans and Scarlet Knights are team playing below .500.
To be able to put together a clean November while getting more development out of the future stars and leaders of the team is a great spot for Penn Stater to be in for the long-term vision while still being able to accomplish some short-term goals as well.
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