Mama, there goes that man.

Nick Singleton’s performance against the No. 2-ranked Indiana Hoosiers felt like a flash from the “good ol’ days.” After years of being known for breaking big plays and cementing Penn State’s dominance on the ground, the running back was seemingly regressing week by week in his senior campaign.

Before Saturday, Singleton’s season totals left a lot to be desired. The returning star had 82 carries for 292 yards, enough for a 3.6 yards per carry average and seven rushing touchdowns. Although his touchdown count has been satisfactory, Singleton’s explosive play ability has been essentially nonexistent. His longest run up until week 11 was just 16 yards.

On Saturday against the Hoosiers, Singleton amassed 71 yards and two rushing touchdowns on 10 attempts while also securing 22 yards on three receptions and a receiving touchdown. Although a hat trick is nice, it was Singleton’s 59-yard run that brought the energy back to the offense, the crowd, and Singleton himself.

“I told him after that long run, ‘this is who you are’,” Penn State quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer said postgame. “When he broke that long run, you can just feel the energy and feel those throwing lanes open up.”

Former head coach James Franklin made it clear that Singleton was trying to “play perfect” rather than playing his own style of football. His regression was seemingly a mental issue rather than a lack of talent. After he broke that long run, Singleton finally seemed like his old self.

“That run obviously got me to myself. I knew I could do this and all that, and ended up scoring. It felt good,” Singleton said postgame.

The running back duo of Singleton and Kaytron Allen has been called “Lightning and Thunder” in years past. However, after each week this season, “Thunder” was by far the more influential element.

Allen, who has been on a tear so far this season, did not find the same success against the Hoosiers that Singleton did. Although he averaged 5.8 yards per carry and has tallied close to 400 more rushing yards than Singleton going into Saturday, the roles were seemingly flipped as offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki and interim head coach Terry Smith gave the ball to the hot hand late in the game, which for the first time this season happened to be Singleton.

Allen finished the game with nine more carries than Singleton. Yet, he was only able to scrape 48 yards, good enough for a 2.5 yards per carry mark. Allen’s longest came on multiple seven-yard scamper.

The two running backs are each chasing Penn State history. After today, Singleton needs just two more rushing touchdowns to pass Saquon Barkley for the most career rushing touchdowns in program history, while Allen needs 320 yards to pass Evan Royster for the most career rushing yards with the program. Allen also surpassed Royster for the Penn State record in career rushing attempts against Indiana.

While it may have been overshadowed by the dramatic loss to a top-ranked Indiana program, it cannot be ignored that one of the most electric players in college football found himself again on Saturday. If this is the Singleton of old coming back, expect the Penn State offense to reach its stride in efficiency and for “Lightning” to join “Thunder” at the top of some NFL draft boards come springtime.