Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen are not very talkative, but when the two Nittany Lion running backs do speak, they are clear, strong, and direct.
Their running styles are similar and have left opposing defenses struggling to keep up. “We always feed off each other,” Singleton said. “It’s the type of game we play.”
Together, they gained 196 rushing yards and became just the second pair of Nittany Lion teammates to reach 2,000 career rushing yards during Penn State’s 21-7 victory over then-No. 19 Illinois on Saturday. They joined Franco Harris and Lydell Mitchell, who both surpassed 2,000 yards as Nittany Lions in 1971.
“There were physical runs out there today, so I just couldn’t be more proud of that group and how they’re playing,” said Penn State coach James Franklin. “That’s going to be important for us the rest of the year.”
No. 7 Penn State (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) will face UCLA (1-3, 0-2) in their fourth consecutive home game on Saturday before their schedule gets tougher.
After this homestand, the Nittany Lions will visit No. 13 USC and Wisconsin, both teams that have had trouble defending against the run, before taking on No. 3 Ohio State’s defense on November 2. The Buckeyes are allowing only 62 rushing yards per game.
In the meantime, offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki will continue to rely on his two main running backs.
He has been successfully alternating Singleton and Allen as games progress. Against Illinois, it was Singleton’s turn first, and he made an impact with runs of 14 and 16 yards to help set up Tyler Warren’s short rushing touchdown.
Singleton has been starting strong in all four games this season.
Although he had a good sophomore year last year, Singleton acknowledged that he wasn’t as explosive as he could have been. As a freshman, he had 24 runs of 10 yards or more and 12 runs of 20 yards or more. Those numbers dropped to 16 and 4, respectively, last year.
He has already made 12 runs of 10 or more yards and four runs of 20 yards this season.
Allen’s ability to make explosive plays varied as well, but he managed to make 18 runs of 10 yards or more last season while sharing the workload with Singleton. He is already halfway to that total this year.
Even though they have made impressive long runs, both players mentioned that they enjoy the tougher plays the most from Saturday.
Allen extended a drive in the second quarter with a run to the outside, where he knocked back Illinois defensive back Miles Scott. As Scott fell back, Allen took a hit from another player but still managed to get the first down.
“I’m not gonna fall backwards,” Allen said. “I’m gonna fall forward always. That’s just who I am.”
Singleton converted an important third down to keep Penn State’s drive going in the third quarter.
Facing third-and-7 from their own 47, Singleton delivered a chip block on Gabe Jacas that sent the 6-foot-3, 275-pound linebacker tumbling. He then caught a short pass from Drew Allar.
Singleton had to jump to grab the ball about six yards short of the first down, but he turned upfield, lowered his shoulder, and powered through a defender to keep the drive alive.
“They ran hard,” Allar said. “There were a lot of guys that they were running over today. It was great to see them get in the end zone and really seal the deal for us.”
