Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen have been on a tear for Penn State football.

Penn State’s rushing duo has gotten hot at the right point of the season — the end. Despite a slow start, influenced by injuries and a general slump, Singleton and Allen have performed up to the expectation of the nation’s best running back duo.

Neither of them is the nation’s best running back.

That title, indisputably, belongs to Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty, who has rushed for 192.08 yards per game and 29 touchdowns on 13 appearances. A Heisman Trophy finalist, Jeanty appeared at the top of 309 ballots.

“He’s a really good player, obviously,” Singleton said about Jeanty on Thursday. “His vision, his balance is incredible. So a guy like him, you’ve got to wrap him up and tackle him.”

Penn State’s defense is bracing for the impact that comes with a player whose yards after contact tally more than most running back’s total yards. Meanwhile, Penn State’s offense is figuring out how to use its rushing duo against a team that would rather face the Nittany Lions’ ground game than their air attack.

Boise State’s rushing defense is ranked No. 23 in the country, allowing 115.08 yards per game. That’s around half of the 224.7 rushing yards per game that SMU, the Nittany Lions’ last opponent, averaged across the season.

“What you see from them is a very disruptive defensive line,” offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki said on the Broncos. “You see a defense that’s making opponents have to earn their touchdowns and their points, and they’re not really giving up things, which is what you would expect this time of year for a team that’s playing in the national playoffs.”

Regardless of Boise State’s strength in the rushing game, there’s still room for the Nittany Lions to work. The Broncos give up 11 fewer rushing yards per game than Oregon, which averages 126.08 and allowed 229 yards and a touchdown to Singleton and Allen, combined.

Additionally, while the Broncos’ pass defense works on defending Tyler Warren, also named on Heisman ballots, Kotelnicki and the offense felt Singleton and Allen’s reemergence gives them a chance to provide another source of attack against the Broncos.

“It affords me more flexibility to try to utilize those guys in ways that’s going to put stress on the defense,” Kotelnicki said.

Against Oregon in the Big Ten Championship, the running backs thrived. Against SMU on Saturday, Singleton and Allen did the same in a victory. The 162 yards and three rushing touchdowns between the two was more than the seven Mustangs who registered a touch in the ground game.

Those performances have been a result of the momentum that Singleton and Allen have built throughout the season. As Penn State nears its peak, the running backs are closer to perfection than they have been since they were freshmen.

“I think the unit as a whole has been doing really well,” Warren said. “You give them two yards of plus-yardage, and they get their head of steam going, and that makes an effective running back.”