Throughout their careers, it’s been a running back room by committee for Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen. The two backs, who have both been dubbed RB1, have been the focal point of Penn State’s offense for three years, dominating the ground game consistently since 2022.

Allen, mostly used for short-yardage situations and the first two-down back for Penn State, is known as a power runner. He is often referred to as the “thunder” to Singleton’s “lightning.” Singleton dominates the receiving downs for the Nittany Lions as a reliable pass-catching back.

Despite Singleton leading the room in rushing touchdowns and carries, Allen has shown many more flashy plays thus far, including a 67-yard touchdown run against FIU. That touchdown has bolstered Allen’s average, which stands at an even eight yards per carry to Singleton’s 4.4. The disparity in their averages has sent some Penn State fans into a frenzy, going as far as to say Allen will be the clear-cut lead back by the season’s end.

“[Allen’s] ability to go the distance, be explosive, his yards per carry are as impressive as anyone in the country,” Franklin said during Monday’s press conference. “Obviously, he’s earned that. He’s earned the right to be a guy that we want to get the ball into his hands as much as we possibly can.”

Allen has accounted for 273 yards on 34 carries with three rushing touchdowns, while Singleton has notched 179 yards on 41 carries with five rushing touchdowns. Going back to previous years, Allen has out-carried Singleton every season since 2022 and out-rushed Singleton in each of the last two seasons.

Now, you won’t find anyone complaining about Allen’s production; however, is Allen doing that well, or is Singleton digressing? Spoiler alert: it’s neither.

Although the stats back Allen to be the workhorse back, nobody can forget the true weapon that Singleton is through the air.

Singleton has tallied five catches for 44 receiving yards this season compared to Allen’s five yards on three catches. These two running backs aren’t better than each other; they simply have different styles of play.

The two have always had this dynamic: Allen goes in for first and second down, while Singleton comes in for third down and passing situations. The notion that Singleton isn’t as good as he’s been in years past is not warranted, nor should there be any attention spent on the matter.

According to Franklin, Singleton has been worrying about “being the perfect back” rather than going out and playing his game. The head coach had a similar sentiment at his press conference on Monday.

“I’ve talked about [wanting to play perfect] with a number of our players that on Saturdays, just go play,” Franklin said. “I got a lot of confidence, and I got a lot of trust in Nick Singleton, and what he’s able to do for us, not only this Saturday, but all season long.”

Singleton has accounted for 3,091 yards on the ground and 37 rushing touchdowns with 812 receiving yards and eight receiving touchdowns in his career at Penn State. Allen has 3,150 yards and 27 touchdowns on the ground. Both of their rushing totals land them at No. 8 and 9 on Penn State’s all-time leading rushers list, respectively.

The Penn State offense has its work cut out for it on Saturday against an Oregon defense that ranks No. 12 in the nation in total defense, allowing just over four yards per play and 228.8 yards per game of total offense. Expect both Singleton and Allen to be utilized to their fullest abilities in the White Out.