No. 7 Penn State began its much-anticipated 2023 season with a 38-15 win over West Virginia on Saturday as the Nittany Lions flexed on both sides of the football before 110,747 fans at Beaver Stadium. The fourth-largest home crowd in program history not only witnessed sophomore quarterback Drew Allar shine in his starting debut, but also Penn State's defense come up with numerous timely stops against a WVU offense that struggled to generate explosive plays.
Allar completed 21 of 29 passes for 325 yards and three touchdowns, finding KeAndre Lambert-Smith for two of the scores. After establishing a commanding lead, the Nittany Lions leaned on their running game as the talented sophomore duo of Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen combined for 121 yards on 23 carries.
After a 37-yard pass from Garrett Greene to Devin Carter in the first quarter that helped set up a WVU touchdown, the Mountaineers failed to generate another play of more than 20 yards until under seven minutes remained. The Mountaineers turned the football over on downs three times while seeking to sustain offensive drives against a stingy Penn State defense that surrendered just 310 total yards.
Penn State's margin of victory likely would have been greater if not for a pair of missed field goals in the first half that led coach James Franklin to make a kicker change in the second half. Sander Shadayak was replaced by Alex Felkins, who hit a 25-yard attempt on the first play of the fourth quarter. While special teams provided an area of concern for the Nittany Lions, they were sharp in most other facets en route to the season-opening win.
Drew Allar shines
Allar ranked as the No. 1 quarterback and No. 3 overall prospect in the Class of 2022, according to 247Sports. He showed why in flashes while backing up Sean Clifford as a freshman last season. Still, the question remained how he would respond to the pressure of his first collegiate start for a program with such lofty aspirations. He wasted little time answering that question by finding Lambert-Smith for a 72-yard touchdown strike on Penn State'e fourth offensive play.
Allar completed 11 of his first 12 passes and rarely seemed flustered while distributing the football to nine different receivers. One of the few personnel question entering the season for Penn State centered on its receivers following the departures of last season's top targets Parker Washington and Mitchell Tinsley. But Allar's connection with Lambert-Smith appeared to be strong and redshirt sophomore Harrison Wallace III also appeared poised for a breakout role. Wallace entered with just 19 career receptions but made seven grabs for 72 yards against the Mountaineers.
West Virginia's hesitancy
WVU entered with even more questions at receiver than Penn State, and it showed. The Mountaineers relied heavily on the running of CJ Donaldson and Greene while rarely choosing to challenge Penn State's talented secondary downfield. Carter looked good in his WVU debut with six catches for 90 yards, but there was nothing explosive or threatening about West Virginia's passing game.
Greene finished 16 of 27 for 162 yards. He threw no interceptions and did a good job evading pressure against Penn State's relentless defensive pressure, but his eyes were rarely fixated downfield. With top targets such as Sam James, Bryce Ford-Wheaton and Kaden Prather departed from last season's squad, the Mountaineers will need someone other than Carter to step up as a receiving weapon if their offense is going to be considered a threat.
For the boosters
Penn State entered as a 21-point favorite and could have merely run the clock out while leading 31-15 in the final seconds. Instead, backup quarterback Beau Pribula kept the football on second-and-goal play and barreled into the end zone with six seconds remaining. A huge cheer erupted for the relatively meaningless touchdown, and it was easy to understand why. With the score, the Nittany Lions covered the spread and surely pleased contingent of their fans.