No. 9 Penn State (4-0, 1-0) used a strong ground game and a defense that didn’t break after the first drive to defeat No. 19 Illinois (4-1, 1-1) 21-7 on Saturday night at Beaver Stadium in the Nittany Lions’ Big Ten opener.
The two teams were tied at halftime and Penn State held a 14-7 lead in the final minutes, but an AJ Harris interception of Luke Altmyer — the Illini QB’s first of the year — set up a Kaytron Allen touchdown with less then two minutes remaining to put the game away. The defense came up big on the final series, with Abdul Carter sacking Altmyer twice, the last resulting in a fumble that sealed the Nittany Lion win.
Penn State had 239 yards rushing on the night. Allen ran 18 times for 102 yards and a touchdown, and fellow running back Nick Singleton carried 16 times for 94 yards and a score. Nittany Lion quarterback Drew Allar was 15-of-21 for 135 yards.
The Nittany Lion defense held Illinois to 219 yards, including just 34 on the ground, and sacked Altmyer seven times. Illinois had only 59 yards of offense in the second half. Safety Jaylen Reed led the way with nine tackles and a sack, while DE/LB Carter had seven, including the 1.5 sacks, 3.5 TFL and a pass breakup, and LB Kobe King had seven with a sack.
Penn State returns to action next week against UCLA for a noon kickoff at Beaver Stadium. The game will air on Fox.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Illinois carved up the Penn State defense on the game’s opening drive. The Illini converted two third downs and QB Luke Altmyer completed five passes for 47 yards, the last a four-yard touchdown toss to a wide open Carson Goda. The 75-yard drive, aided by a late hit penalty against Penn State, took more than five minutes off the clock and put Illinois in front 7-0.
Penn State A 20 -yard pass from Drew Allar to Trey Wallace, an 11-yard Allar keeper and a Nick Singleton 14-yard burst had the Nittany Lions at the Illini 30 in three plays. Allar’s pass to a wide open Singleton on a rub route converted a third down with a 16-yard gain to the Illinois 8, and after a five-yard Singleton carry, tight end Tyler Warren took a direct snap for a diving three-yard touchdown run.
The Nittany Lions’ eight-play, 75-yard drive and Sander Sahaydak’s extra point tied the game at 7-7 with 5:34 left in the first quarter.
Illinois offense was back in Penn State territory in just two plays on the ensuing drive — a 17-yard pass from Altmyer to Pat Bryant and a pass interference penalty — but the Nittany Lion defense stiffened from there. Hugh Robertson’s punt from the Nittany Lion 40, however, pinned Penn State at its own 4.
Penn State moved out to its own 42 on the strength of two 12-yard runs by Kaytron Allen and a trio of short Allar passes. Facing fourth and 1 from its own 42, Penn State opted for a Riley Thompson punt that was downed at the Illini 10 to start the second quarter
Second quarter
Despite converting picking up two first downs — including a 30-yard hookup from Altmyer to Josh McCray on third and 16 from their own 12 — Illinois had to settle for a punt, another well-placed kick that put the Nittany Lions at their own 8.
A run-heavy drive that featured carries by Singleton, Allen and backup QB Beau Pribula along with a 15-yard pass from Allar to Warren got Penn State to the Illini 23. But the drive stalled from there with a four-yard pass to Warren and two incompletions, and Sahaydak’s 40-yard field goal attempt went wide left to leave the score tied 7-7 after a six-minute drive.
Kaden Feagin broke through the middle for 34-yards on the first play of Illinois ensuing drive, and a 13-yard Altmyer gain moved the Illini to the Penn State 32. Illinois failed to convert a third and seven, but an unnecessary roughness call against Penn State gave the Illini a first down at the Penn State 13.
Illinois used the ground game to set up first and goal from the 2, but things turned disastrous for the Illini from there. A shotgun snap went over Altmyer’s head for a nine-yard loss, then Hakeem Beamon took the Illini QB down for a three-yard loss. On third and goal from the 14, Altmyer threw it away and got called for intentional grounding. A false start set Illinois back another five yards, and David Olano’s 45-yard field goal attempt went wide left.
Penn State took over at its own 27 with 44 seconds left and quickly picked up 15 yards on a pass from Allar to Wallace. Two incompletions and a sack, however, brought the drive to a halt and the two teams went into the locker room still tied 7-7.
Third quarter
The Nittany Lions put together a long scoring drive to open the second half. Allar completed three passes for 28 yards and Nick Singleton carried six times for 25 of Penn State’s 42 rushing yards on the possession, including a four-yard touchdown run to put the Nittany Lions in front for the first time. Penn State went ahead 14-7 after a 12-play, 74-yard drive that ate up 6:16.
Penn State’s defense forced a three-and-out for the first time, and the Nittany Lion offense took over at its own 42, its best field position of the night so far. Kaytron Allen rushed for 28 yards and Warren converted a third down with a 10-yard run on another direct snap. But facing fourth and three from the Illini 17, Penn State went for it and couldn’t get the job done as Allar was hurried into a pass to Julian Fleming, who was taken down short of the marker.
Fourth quarter
The Illini picked up one first down at their own 26 to start the final period, but the Nittany Lion defense came up big again. Zane Durant sacked Altmyer for a loss of seven on first down and, after an eight-yard completion, Jaylen Reed and Tony Rojas teamed up to take Altmyer down for another seven-yard loss to force a Robertson punt.
Penn State took over at its own 32 and Singleton immediately broke off an 11-yard run and a pass interference call on a deep Allar pass to Omari Evans had the Nittany Lions into Illinois territory. A 13-yard gain by Singleton moved Penn State inside the 30, but the drive stalled soon after and for the second time on the night, Sahaydak missed a field goal attempt, this time from 40 yards out.
Penn State’s lead remained at 14-7 with under nine minutes remaining.
Illinois got to midfield with a 16-yard pass from Altmyer to Pat Bryant and a six-yard Feagin carry. But on fourth and 6 with six minutes remaining, Altmyer threw his first interception of the year as AJ Harris picked off a pass and appeared to have returned it for a touchdown. A block in the back penalty though wiped the score off the board and the Nittany Lion offense set up at the Illinois 41.
The turnover proved to be the backbreaker for the Illini. Allar passes to tight ends Luke Reynolds and Warren moved the chains, Pribula picked up seven yards and Allen took care of it from there, grinding out 19 yards on four carries, including a five-yard touchdown road. Ryan Barker’s extra point extended Penn State’s lead to 21-7 with 1:55 left in the game.
Illinois converted a fourth and 12 on an 18-yard pass to Hank Beatty, and the pair connected again on a 21-yard pass to get into Penn State territory with a minute left. The Nittany Lion defense, though, came up big again. Abdul Carter sacked Altmyer for a loss, Dani Dennis-Sutton pressured the QB into an incompletion, and Carter sacked Altmyer again, this time stripping the ball away for a fumble recovered by Smith Vilbert.
Penn State took a knee for the final play and a 21-7 victory.
