Another year, another loss to Ohio State.

Penn State football was outdueled by a great Ohio State team in multiple areas in Saturday’s 20-13 loss at Beaver Stadium. The Buckeyes deserved credit, but the Nittany Lions still had letdowns. Let’s break down what went wrong against them for the eighth consecutive time.

Quarterbacks: C-

Drew Allar looked more prepared for the big moment than he did last season, but it didn’t show up on the stat line. Allar went 12-for-20 for 146 receiving yards and an uncharacteristic interception in the end zone. He also had 10 carries for 31 yards. Meanwhile, Beau Pribula had one four-yard pass and one rush for no gain.

Running Backs: F

Anyone who watched the game saw Kaytron Allen had three chances to score from within the five-yard line and didn’t capitalize with Penn State down a touchdown in the fourth quarter. Allen is too good to let that happen, which made the situation even more frustrating from a Penn State perspective. He finished the day with just 27 rushing yards on 12 carries.

Nick Singleton was an afterthought on the ground, with six carries for 15 yards. He did, however, have 54 receiving yards, but his lack of impact in the run game was unacceptable in the biggest game of the season. Nowhere did the offensive incompetence manifest itself more than the running backs.

Wide Receivers: F

Davison Igbinosun’s end zone interception reinforced the importance of ball security to Trey Wallace. While folks could argue that Igbinosun didn’t catch the ball, Wallace either needed to come down with the ball or deflect it out of bounds. He had two catches for 45 yards.

Meanwhile, Julian Fleming had just one catch for four yards. Again, the lack of success in this type of game was unacceptable.

Tight Ends: C

Although he only had three catches for 47 yards, it was Tyler Warren’s 33-yard run that put Penn State at the three-yard line before the fourth-quarter drive stalled. Warren had 14 more yards over two additional carries. Still, having only three receptions was disappointing.

Offensive Line: F

The offensive line’s biggest letdown was, of course, the fourth-down drive. Allen had nowhere to run because there weren’t any gaps. This by itself warrants an F, but there’s more: Allar was sacked twice, and Ohio State had three tackles for loss.

Front Seven: D-

The front seven was the least bad position group on Saturday. It had three sacks and five tackles for loss, but it was bullied by a banged-up offensive line down to its third-string left tackle.

Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson combined for 149 rushing yards. As good as those two are, they shouldn’t have been able to produce so much given the offensive line situation. The front seven crumbled against them on the last drive, even though a stop would’ve put Penn State in great position to at least tie the game.

Secondary: F

The secondary played such a big role that it decided the outcome of the game. Zion Tracy’s pick-six off Will Howard’s first throw couldn’t have been a better start. But then, an unsportsmanlike conduct call against Elliot Washington II after a third-down play that would’ve forced the Buckeyes to punt gave them a first down, and ultimately a touchdown. Tracy’s pick-six gave Penn State momentum, but Washington’s penalty squandered that and handed it to Ohio State on a silver plate, and the Buckeyes never looked back.

Washington’s penalty was the beginning of a series of unfortunate events for the secondary. Howard and his receivers amassed 182 yards, with Jeremiah Smith’s 55 leading the way. Emeka Egbuka and Brandon Inniss also had a good outing, with a combined two touchdowns and 64 yards.

Penn State’s defensive backs simply couldn’t contain Ohio State’s receiving corps. That, and Washington’s penalty, were huge reasons behind the loss.

Special Teams: C+

Ryan Barker continued to prove he isn’t fazed by big moments with two field goals. Singleton had three kickoff returns for 66 yards, and Tracy had two punt returns for 21 yards. Riley Thompson averaged 42.8 yards over four punts.