Penn State opened one of its most anticipated seasons in a long time with an easy win against Nevada. The Nittany Lions now have a chance to ascend to No. 1 in the next AP Top 25 poll, though Big Ten rival Ohio State will have a case after knocking off top-ranked Texas earlier in the day.
Drew Allar, who spurned the NFL Draft to return for another year with the Nittany Lions, had a sterling 2025 debut. He completed 22 of his 26 pass attempts for 217 yards and one touchdown while establishing a connection with USC transfer Kyron Hudson, who caught Allar’s lone touchdown pass and finished with a team-high 89 yards receiving.
Penn State’s defense was the real standout, though. The Nittany Lions controlled the line of scrimmage while holding Nevada to just 78 yards rushing as a team. The Wolf Pack had 2.5 yards per carry and 55 of those yards of the ground came courtesy of quarterback Chubba Purdy, who was an effective scrambler when plays broke down.
Dani Denis-Sutton established himself as Penn State’s next standout pass rusher. He had one sack and 2.5 tackles for loss as a constant presence in Nevada’s backfield. He also forced two fumbles and had a quarterback hurry. The Nittany Lions finished with three sacks and nine tackles for loss as a team.
Penn State returns home in Week 2 against FIU.
Read the full article here