Tag: Beau Pribula

247Sports ranks Beau Pribula among nation’s best backup QBs in 2024

If Penn State has to rely on a backup quarterback in 2024, 247Sports thinks Penn State should be in good hands.

It seems one of the most popular player on any football team can be the backup quarterback. When an offense is looking sluggish and in need of a bit of a jolt, the backup quarterback may have the best opportunity to connect much-needed life into any offense. Penn State fans are familiar with that concept over the years with Michael Robinson emerging from a backup role (along with a handful of position changes to get him on the field) and Trace McSorley’s first real chance to show what he can do backing up an injured Christian Hackenberg in the Gator Bowl against Georgia with a furious fourth-quarter rally (before ultimately falling a bit short).

Entering the 2024 season, Penn State looks to have one of the best backup options available with [autotag]Beau Pribula[/autotag], who will be the top backup to incumbent and projected starter [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag]. What makes Pribula so valuable to the Penn State offense is his ability to do some things on the field Allar is not expected or capable of pulling off, like using his legs to generate some speed and mix things up on the ground. Even with a new offensive coordinator coming in with Andy Kotelnicki, fans should expect to see a decent amount of Pribula involved in the offense even with Allar taking the majority of the snaps at quarterback.

247Sports thinks highly of Pribula going into the new college football season. In a ranking of the top 10 backup quarterbacks in the country, 247Sports ranked Pribula at no. 6 on its list.

“The Nittany Lions are confident Pribula will be difference-maker this season as a run-threat after rushing for six touchdowns and 329 yards last fall,” 247Sports noted. “Pribula gives the Nittany Lions a wrinkle in short-yardage situations and can protect Allar when the tough yards are needed.”

Most fans would probably love to see the running game, fueled by Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen, take care of the short-yardage situations with authority, but it should not be unexpected that Pribula will be used at times to keep the defense guessing.

The biggest question remains just how Kotelnicki will utilize Pribula, and if that will involve Allar coming off the field or keeping both on the field at the same time.

According to the 247Sports backup QB rankings, Pribula is the fourth-best backup option in the Big Ten. Oregon‘s Dante Moore is at the top of the Big Ten list as he backs up Dillon Gabriel in Oregon’s first season in the Big Ten. Ohio State‘s Julian Sayin, expected to back either Will Howard or Devin Brown, is the no. 3 backup QB on the list. USC‘s Jayden Maiva is next on the list at no. 4. Maiava is projected to be the top backup to Miller Moss as the Trojans enter the Big Ten.

You can view the full top 10 backup quarterbacks in 2024 according to 247Sports.

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Matt Zollers picks Missouri over Penn State

Penn State surprisingly missed out on the top in-state QB in the Class of 2025.

Arguably the most important commitment for the Penn State Nittany Lions in the class of 2025 was going to be announced on April 4 as they waited to hear where top in-state quarterback [autotag]Matt Zollers[/autotag] had decided to play his college football. With [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] and his offensive staff looking to bring in two quarterbacks during this cycle, they were hoping to land the rising four-star recruit who is ranked as one of the top players in Pennsylvania.

Unfortunately for Penn State, he committed to Missouri.

After looking like the leaders in the clubhouse for a long time during his process, Zollers’ recruitment took a national turn as the likes of Georgia, Missouri, and Alabama were part of his final five schools.

“My connections at Missouri were just greater than they were anywhere else. This was a really tough decision for me to make. I ultimately decided this morning,” the talented quarterback told Chad Simmons of On3.

That statement is an eye opener for people who have been following this recruitment process considering he had taken around eight visits to Happy Valley and roughly three to Missouri.

The Tigers really popped onto his radar and made a late push to land him as one of the headliners of their class.

Penn State’s bottleneck at the position could have had something to do with his decision as well.

Incumbent starter [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] could come back for another season after this year, [autotag]Beau Pribula[/autotag] is still a factor alongside [autotag]Jaxon Smolik[/autotag], plus highly-rated [autotag]Ethan Grunkemeyer[/autotag] from the 2024 class is entering his freshman season.

Still, this is a tough one to swallow for Penn State fans as they lose out on the top-rated recruit in the state of Pennsylvania and someone who was at the top of their board.

5 takeaways from Penn State’s brutal loss to Ole Miss in the Peach Bowl

5 takeaways from Penn State’s brutal loss to Ole Miss in the Peach Bowl

It was a day to forget for the Nittany Lions, who came to Atlanta looking for a statement win, but it turned into a statement 38-25 loss to the Ole Miss Rebels. It was a struggle in all phases for Penn State, who couldn’t stop the run, the pass, and even had a fourth-quarter field goal attempt blocked.

Despite starting the game with a positive field goal drive and a few good runs, the offense never got into a rhythm. [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] and the passing game struggled mightily, only hitting on a big play on a fluke-tipped pass to Tyler Warren for 75 yards, which ironically ended up being Penn State’s longest play of the season.

The defense, missing its top two corners and best edge defender, was no match for the up-tempo explosive offensive that is the Rebels. Ole Miss had its way running and throwing the football, dicing up the Penn State secondary every which way.

It will be interesting to see how the Nittany Lions rebound from a now 3 loss season. All three losses will have happened against top-11 opponents where the Penn State offense looked absolutely anemic. No matter the fallout, Drew Allar and new offensive coordinator [autotag]Andy Kotelnicki[/autotag] will have an enormous amount of pressure on themselves to improve the offense going into next year.

After an all-around pathetic performance, here are five takeaways from Penn State’s Peach Bowl loss to Ole Miss.

Peach Bowl dud ends Penn State’s season with 38-25 loss to Ole Miss

Penn State’s frustrating season ended with a blowout loss to Ole Miss in the Peach Bowl.

A year after celebrating a bowl victory in a shower of rose petals, Penn State’s end to the 2023 season was anything but peachy. Penn State was dominated by Ole Miss in the Peach Bowl and ended the year with a stinker in a 38-25 loss in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl on Saturday afternoon. The Nittany Lions defense was shredded by Ole Miss, which took advantage of favorable matchups in the passing game all afternoon in Atlanta.

Penn State struck first with a field goal by [autotag]Alex Felkins[/autotag] from 26 yards on their first offensive series of the game. That came after the defense forced a quick three-and-out against the Ole Miss defense to start the game, which led to Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart heading to the medical tent at the end of the brief possession.

Penn State may have caught some breaks on the ensuing Ole Miss possession. After the Rebels entered the red zone, officials blew dead what could have been a live ball for an Ole Miss touchdown due to a whistle for an offside penalty on Penn State. The Rebels had to settle for a field goal after officials missed another potential penalty on Penn State on the following snap.

Both teams scored twice in the second quarter with Penn State scoring a pair of touchdowns with a touchdown pass from [autotag]Beau Pribula[/autotag] to [autotag]Nick Singleton[/autotag] and a [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] pass to [autotag]Theo Johnson[/autotag]. But the half ended with Penn State trailing by a score of 20-17 after giving up 340 yards of offense to the Rebels. And of the 115 passing yards Allar had at the half, 75 of them came on one play at the end of the first quarter when [autotag]Tyler Warren[/autotag] caught a pass and ran for a big gain.

Dart had gotten in a rhythm with his passing and gashed a Penn State defense playing without its top two defensive backs and top defensive end, and a defense that took some injuries at linebacker in the first half to [autotag]Kobe King[/autotag] and [autotag]Abdul Carter[/autotag]. Dart connected six times in the first half with tight end Caden Prieskorn, twice for a touchdown and three times for a first down, and five times with star wide receiver Tre Harris, each time for a first down.

The third quarter was a disaster for Penn State. The offense went three-and-out on all three third-quarter possessions. Meanwhile, the Rebels just continued to take advantage of its tempo to leave the Penn State defense scrambling and unable to catch up. Ole Miss added 10 points to its halftime lead and took a 31-17 lead into the fourth quarter. At that point, the game was all but decided as Penn State’s threat of a comeback was thwarted with a blocked field goal that led to an Ole Miss touchdown run by Dart to put the game well out of reach at 38-17. A late touchdown pass from Allar to [autotag]Harrison Wallace III[/autotag] cut into the Ole Miss lead, but was too little, too late.

Penn State played the Peach Bowl without some key players who opted out of the game with an eye toward their NFL futures. Penn State was without offensive lineman [autotag]Olu Fashanu[/autotag], defensive end [autotag]Chop Robinson[/autotag], and cornerback [autotag]Kalen King[/autotag]. All three could be potential first-round draft picks in the 2024 NFL draft. Penn State was also without [autotag]Manny Diaz[/autotag], who left his position as defensive coordinator to become the head coach at Duke. The defense looked disorganized, which should have been expected given the absences from what was rated one of the top defensive units of the season. But the offensive struggles were nothing new for the roster, and there was no evidence of finding ways to change things up in the bowl game.

Penn State will now look forward to the 2024 college football season, which will be quite an interesting year for the Big Ten and the entire college football landscape. Penn State will open the 2024 season on the road at West Virginia on Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024. The Big Ten will also welcome four new members in Oregon, UCLA, USC, and Washington, and Penn State will face each of them except for Oregon. The College Football Playoff will also expand to 12 teams next season, making it easier than ever for the Nittany Lions to get into the playoff mix in the playoff era. Well, if they can patch up the offense at all between now and next fall.

Penn State’s spring game, the Blue-White Game, is scheduled for Saturday, April 13, 2024.

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5 reasons Penn State will beat Michigan State in Detroit

With a Black Friday showdown against Michigan State, we break down five reasons Penn State finishes the regular season with a victory.

This Friday, the Land Grant Trophy is on the line when Penn State (9-2) kicks off against Michigan State (4-7) to close out the regular season. The Nittany Lions and Spartans will face off at Ford Field in Detroit. Despite the series being tied 18-18-1 all-time, Penn State is a comfortable 19.5-point favorite on FanDuel as of Monday morning.

Since the trophy was implemented in 1993, Penn State has won 17 of the 27 meetings against Michigan State. Friday’s matchup will mark the tenth consecutive meeting of the two schools, and with the Big Ten expanding next year, the next matchup won’t be until 2025.

The Nittany Lions and Spartans are both coming off wins. Penn State beat Rutgers 27-6, while the Spartans held off Indiana for a 24-21 victory. Several questions surround the Nittany Lions, specifically the injury status of [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] and whether [autotag]Beau Pribula[/autotag] gets a shot against a below-average Spartan team. A win would put Penn State in a prime position to secure a New Year’s Six bowl.

Let’s take a look at five reasons Penn State takes home the Land Grant Trophy for back-to-back seasons.

Key stats from Penn State’s victory over Rutgers

Let’s take a look at some of the key numbers from the box score of Penn State’s win over Rutgers.

Penn State extended their dominant winning streak over Rutgers on Saturday, but it wasn’t easy or pretty.

The 27-6 victory had an injury to [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] that forced backup quarterback [autotag]Beau Pribula[/autotag] into the most extended action of his career so far.

The running game carried the load down the stretch and the Nittany Lions were able to give their seniors one last win in front of a Beaver Stadium crowd.

There will be a lot of speculation about the quarterback situation starting with health and moving into offensive effectiveness as Penn State stares down the season finale and a bowl game.

But for now, the Nittany Lions can enjoy their 17th straight win over Rutgers.

Here are key stats from Saturday.

5 takeaways from Penn State’s victory over Rutgers

Here are five final thoughts on the direction of Penn State football after a win over Rutgers.

Penn State improved to 9-2 on Saturday afternoon after a 27-6 victory over Rutgers in Happy Valley. It wasn’t always pretty for the Nittany Lions, but they pulled out the win with their tough defense and gritty offensive performance. Penn State will end the regular season next week against Michigan State in Detroit on Friday evening.

No team could get the passing game going in the first half, and it seemed like every yard Penn State gained was hard-earned. Starting quarterback [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] left the game early while running and taking a brutal hit that left him on the turf for a minute. He appeared to injure his right shoulder area and did not return, and he airmailed a screen pass out of bounds on the next play. Redshirt freshman Beau Pribula came into the game and seemed to give the offense a jolt of energy with his ability to find the edge on several of his runs. Allar’s health will be a fascinating storyline to follow this week.

Rutgers was able to drive the ball down the field for a couple of drives with quarterback Gavin Wimsatt, giving Penn State’s defense fits with his legs. The defense forced the Scarlett Knights into three turnovers and pressured Wimsatt often.

Let us dive into a few takeaways from the Nittany Lions’ ninth win of the season.

Drew Allar injured in Penn State’s win vs. Rutgers

Penn State’s defense and running game helped take care of Rutgers in Week 12.

Penn State starting quarterback [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] Saturday’s game early in the third quarter with an apparent injury, leaving [autotag]Beau Pribula[/autotag] to run the offense for the remainder of the game. After inheriting a 10-6 lead, Pribula helped guide the Nittany Lions to a 27-6 victory over Rutgers to improve to 9-2 on the season. The win helps keep Penn State in the mix for a New Years Six bowl game.

Allar took a rough, but clean, hit while running with the football on a run up the middle. He took contact as he was going down without clearly giving himself up, which would have drawn a penalty on the Scarlet Knights. Allar stayed in for one more play and was way off the mark on a pass to the right side of the field. He came out of the game immediately following the incompletion and did not return.

Penn State’s defense gave up some long drives to Rutgers on a couple of occasions, including the first offensive drive by the Rutgers offense in the first quarter that ended with a field goal. Rutgers drove down to the 1-yard line but had the ball pushed back due to a holding penalty.  Penn State trailed 3-0 at the end of the first quarter and was locked in a tight 10-6 battle at halftime after Rutgers kicked a field goal to close out the first half.

[autotag]Kaytron Allen[/autotag] rushed for two touchdowns and 69 yards in the game. [autotag]Nick Singleton[/autotag] added 61 yards on 11 rushing attempts as Penn State is still without a 100-yard game from either running back this season. Pribula ended the game leading the Nittany Lions in rushing with 71 yards. Penn State combined for 234 rushing yards and let the running game take care of business after halftime.

Penn State’s defense held Rutgers’ Kyle Monangai to just 39 rushing yards on 16 carries. Rutgers quarterback Gavin Wimsatt completed 10-of-16 passes for 130 yards but lost a fumble and was intercepted, which led to 10 points by Penn State. Penn State has not given up a touchdown to Rutgers in Happy Valley since 1994.

Penn State will close out the regular season next Friday, Nov. 24 with a Black Friday game against Michigan State. The game will be played in Detroit’s Ford Field, home of the Detroit Lions and it will appear in primetime on NBC.

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Top 10 Big Ten rushing yardage leaders after Week 7

Penn State has two of the Big Ten’s top 10 leading rushers heading into the Ohio State game.

Penn State is home to the Big Ten’s top rushing offense this season. The Nittany Lions are leading the Big Ten with an average of 203.33 rushing yards per game, which puts Penn State on pace for its top rushing average since the 2018 season with Miles Sanders and quarterback Trace McSorley leading the way on the ground.

The combination of [autotag]Nick Singleton[/autotag] and [autotag]Kaytron Allen[/autotag] gives Penn State two of the Big Ten’s top 10 rushing yardage leaders and their split roles have helped to keep both as fresh as possible. Backup quarterback [autotag]Beau Pribula[/autotag] adding on 225 rushing yards is a nice little boost to the Penn State rushing production too. But Penn State’s dynamic rushing duo will face their stiffest test this weekend at Ohio State with the Buckeyes owning the Big Ten’s fourth-best rushing defense this season.

Penn State’s Big Ten-leading rushing defense will face some of the Big Ten’s top running backs in the second half of the season as well. Here is a look at the Big Ten’s top 10 rushing yardage leaders through Week 7. And here is a look at the Big Ten’s top 10 passing yardage leaders.

Drew Allar tosses 4 TDs as Penn State shuts out Iowa, 31-0

Penn State was in full control of Iowa in all areas in a 31-0 victory.

Rain and blustery winds could not dampen the mood for the second-largest crowd in Beaver Stadium history on Saturday night. Not when the defense was dominant in pitching a shutout and [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag] passed for four touchdowns in a 31-0 victory over Iowa. Penn State’s dominant victory was a performance that put on display Penn State’s championship-caliber defense and a strong efficient and steady offensive performance against a program that typically plays some of the best defense in the Big Ten.

How good was the Penn State defense? The Nittany Lions not only didn’t allow Iowa to score, but the Hawkeyes were held to just 76 yards of total offense, including 20 rushing yards as a team.

Penn State’s offense got off to a bit of a slow start against a stingy Iowa defense, but the running game continued to chew up yardage on the Hawkeyes. [autotag]Kaytron Allen[/autotag] carried the football 21 times for 72 hard-earned yards and [autotag]Nick Singleton[/autotag] rushed for 49 yards on 17 carries. The ground game was especially solid in the second half as Penn State continued to wear down the Iowa defenders.

Penn State may still be on the lookout for a second receiver to really step up into a reliable role, but Allar was in sync with his tight ends. Tyler Warren was on the receiving end of two of Allar’s four touchdown passes. [autotag]KeAndre Lambert-Smith[/autotag] and [autotag]Khalil Dinkins[/autotag] each added another. Lambert-Smith led the Nittany Lions with 8 receptions and 66 receiving yards.

Allar’s night came to an end in the fourth quarter with Penn State up 31-0. As he left the game, making way for [autotag]Beau Pribula[/autotag] to get some time running the offense, Allar completed 25-of-37 passes for 166 yards and four touchdowns without an interception. He has still not thrown an interception in his young college football career. Allar also rushed for 22 yards on eight attempts.

Penn State’s defense was all over the Iowa offense, which was playing without three of its top players due to injury. Penn State’s defense only sacked Iowa quarterback Cade McNamara twice in the game, but they made for a long evening for the former Michigan passer (who won with Michigan in his last trip to Beaver Stadium in 2021). [autotag]Curtis Jacobs[/autotag] was all over the action with 2 fumble recoveries and a tackle for loss in the game. [autotag]Adisa Isaac[/autotag] also landed on a loose football after [autotag]Chop Robinson[/autotag] knocked the ball out of the hands of McNamara on a sack.

Penn State will continue Big Ten play next week with a road trip to Northwestern.

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