No. 8 Penn State football (1-0) steamrolled West Virginia (0-1) 34-12 on Saturday at Milan Puskar Stadium in Morgantown, West Virginia.

The beginning of the game was ugly for both teams, as Penn State and West Virginia each fumbled once to end drives. The Nittany Lions’ passing game found its rhythm and opened the scoring with a 50-yard touchdown reception by Trey Wallace. Penn State scored again on its next drive, with Kaytron Allen making a 20-yard touchdown catch. West Virginia kicked two field goals, but not before a second Trey Wallace touchdown made it 20-6 to end the half.

Penn State held firm control after the two-hour severe weather delay, running up the score with two touchdowns. The Nittany Lions ultimately won 34-12 to start the season in the win column.

How It Happened

West Virginia quarterback Garrett Greene took a deep shot on the first play, but the pass was broken up by Jaylen Reed. Jahiem White picked up a 12-yard gain to refresh the downs, but two more carries brought up 3rd-and-6. Greene completed a short pass to Kole Taylor, who was tackled at the line of scrimmage to force the Mountaineers to punt.

Nick Singleton picked up five yards to open Penn State’s inaugural drive, and Allen gained two yards to make it 3rd-and-3. Beau Pribula entered the game and immediately ran a quarterback option, tossing it to Allen for the first down. But then, disaster struck: West Virginia recovered a fumbled snap at the Nittany Lions’ 28-yard line.

West Virginia, however, didn’t have the ball for more than a play. Greene was swarmed by the defense, who knocked him to the ground and recovered a fumble at the 47-yard line. Reed was credited with recovery.

Allen rushed for four yards to begin the drive. Omari Evans dropped a pass from Allar, and Allen was stuffed to end the drive almost as quickly as it began.

Reed opened West Virginia’s next drive by sacking Greene for a nine-yard loss, who once again couldn’t hold onto the snap. White recovered to pick up the first down, and Greene found Hudson Clement for a 20-yard completion to extend the drive again. Greene scrambled for an 11-yard gain but fumbled once again however, this time the Mountaineers retained possession. Facing 3rd-and-1 two plays later, CJ Donaldson was halted for no gain. Greene narrowly got the first down and 4th-and-1, bulldozing his way through to get to the 25-yard line. West Virginia went for it on 4th-and-1 again a few plays later, but an attempted tush push was unsuccessful.

Allar found a wide-open Wallace for an 18-yard completion to start Penn State’s drive. He found Wallace again one play for a 14-yard gain to end the first quarter. Allar found Wallace yet again at West Virginia’s 35-yard line, and he ran it to the house to make it 6-0 Penn State with 14:53 left in the second quarter. The Nittany Lions unsuccessfully attempted a two-point conversion.

Welcome to the Trey Wallace show, folks. pic.twitter.com/aWUCcfzLFH

— Onward State (@OnwardState) August 31, 2024

After a West Virginia three-and-out, Pribula began another drive with an 11-yard run. He fumbled while being tackled, but he was ruled down before the ball came out. Allar threw an incompletion, then dashed 15 yards for another first down. Two plays later, he hit Wallace with a dot for 17 yards. The momentum stalled as the Nittany Lions found themselves facing 4th-and-4, but the offense stayed on the field. Allar found Tyler Warren for a seven-yard completion to extend the drive. The decision paid off, as he then found Allen, who bulldozed his way 20 yards into the end zone. Sander Sahaydak’s extra point was good, making it 13-0 with 9:46 left in the half.

Kaytron

pic.twitter.com/J3TTJgRZbd

— Onward State (@OnwardState) August 31, 2024

Facing intense coverage the first three plays, Greene found Preston Fox for a 16-yard completion to get across midfield at Penn State’s 49-yard line. A pass was tipped by KJ Winston, but Taylor caught it for a 25-yard gain to reach the 24-yard line. However, the drive stalled, and Michael Hayes II’s field goal made it 13-3 with 6:15 left in the half.

After Penn State’s first three-and-out, Donaldson narrowly picked up a first down on 3rd-and-1. He picked up another nine yards to reach Penn State’s 39-yard line. On 3rd-and-8 a few plays later, Greene rushed for seven yards, tasking the Mountaineers with another big call. The offense stayed put, and the officials ruled Donaldson reached the line to gain. But the drive stalled after this, and West Virginia kicked a field goal to make it 13-6 with 37 seconds left in the half.

Starting at the 27-yard line, Singleton rushed for no gain. Then, Allar took a shot to Evans, who hauled in the catch for a 55-yard gain with 10 seconds left. Allar passed it to Wallace, who, under coverage, hauled in the catch and landed in the end zone. Sahaydak’s extra point was successful, making it 20-6 to end the first half.

During halftime, lighting strikes delayed the game.

~ Two hours later ~

Penn State got the ball to begin the second half after the severe weather delay. Two small runs by Allen brought up 3rd-and-7, but Allar rushed 10 yards to keep things going. One play later, Singleton got another first down with a 13-yard screen pass. Facing 3rd-and-8 two plays later, Allar again ran 10 yards for the first down. Allar handed it off to Singleton, who exploded for a 40-yard dash to the end zone to make it 27-6 with 10:16 left in the third quarter.

Singleton gets on the board

pic.twitter.com/3gFotB2vMC

— Onward State (@OnwardState) August 31, 2024

Both teams went three-and-out for the next two drives. West Virginia took over at its own 11-yard line, and an offside penalty against Abdul Carter made it 1st-and-5. Carter was called for a late hit out of bounds on the very next play, moving the Mountaineers to the 37-yard line. Another offsides call on Penn State, this time against Dani Dennis-Sutton on 3rd-and-10, kept what would’ve been a stalled drive alive even longer. However, the Mountaineers were ultimately forced to punt three plays later.

Failure to complete passes and find gaps doomed Penn State’s next drive. Greene connected with Traylon Ray and Fox for two 25-yard completions to have the Mountaineers at Penn State’s 15-yard line to end the third quarter. Donaldson was swarmed for a five-yard loss, but Greene soon found Clement to make it 1st-and-goal. Donaldson ran it in for a touchdown with 12:49 left in the fourth quarter, but Carter sacked Greene on the two-point attempt.

Singleton broke free for a 40-yard gain to begin Penn State’s drive. After a carry for no gain, Singleton picked up seven yards to make it 3rd-and-3. Allar stiff-armed his way for a three-yard first-down pickup, and then, Pribula hit Warren with a 19-yard touchdown pass. to make it 34-12 with nine minutes left in regulation.

Smith Vilbert stripped the ball from Greene, and it was recovered by Dani Dennis-Sutton at West Virginia’s 44-yard line. Pribula and Cam Wallace repeatedly ran the ball with the clock ticking. However, Sahaydak missed his field goal attempt.

Backup quarterback Nicco Marchiol’s pass was picked off by Elliot Washington II. From there, Penn State ran the clock out to win 34-12.

Takeaways

• Like he was against West Virginia last season, Allar was efficient and in control of the game. He went 11-for-17 with 216 passing yards and three touchdowns, which is the kind of performance Penn State would’ve hoped for. It’s a positive sign that new offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki works well with the junior signal-caller.
• James Franklin said the wide receivers improved a lot, and so far, he appears to be right. Trey Wallace showed that with 117 receiving yards and two touchdowns, which essentially propelled Penn State to victory.
• It was the Jaylen Reed and KJ Winston show on defense. The safeties had a game-high combined 21 total tackles and also forced a fumble.
• Additionally, Tom Allen’s defense thrived in his debut as Penn State’s defensive coordinator. Holding West Virginia to 12 points in its own building is impressive, but so are six tackles for loss, five pass breakups, two forced fumbles, and an interception.

What’s Next

Penn State hosts Bowling Green at noon on Saturday, September 7, at Beaver Stadium.