Catch a breath, folks.

Penn State football fended off Rutgers in what turned into an all-time classic game. The Nittany Lions walked out of SHI Stadium with a 40-36 victory, sending the team to a .500 record and a bowl game.

Penn State’s offense was cooking all game. Kaytron Allen led the way with yet another career night of 226 rushing yards and a touchdown on 22 carries, while quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer continued to show his consistency, completing 17-of-21 attempts and a touchdown.

The real head scratcher of the night was Penn State’s defense.

Heading into the contest, Penn State held Nebraska and Michigan State to 20 total points; however, throughout the night in Piscataway, the Nittany Lions were torched for big gains on the ground and through the air.

Rutgers quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis had a massive day, completing 16-of-22 passes for 338 yards and three touchdowns, good enough for a 246.8 rating.

On the ground, Antwan Raymond grinded out 189 yards on 29 carries, including a touchdown run on the very first drive of the game. The Scarlet Knight also had two catches for 62 yards, including a 41-yard touchdown catch early in the fourth quarter.

Even though it had given up 36 points, the Nittany Lion defense grew to be the clutch factor that Penn State needed to not only escape with the win but also to salvage bowl eligibility after an abysmal six-game slide earlier this season.

It all started when the defense came up with points. After the Penn State offense was stopped and forced to punt down 36-33 with just over 11 minutes remaining, Rutgers rolled to Penn State territory with five rushes by Raymond.

As Kaliakmanis dropped back to pass, defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton charged through the pocket, forcing the Scarlet Knight quarterback to drop the ball, which jumped from the turf into Amare Campbell’s hands.

DEFENSE pic.twitter.com/CigaWljr8A

— Onward State (@OnwardState) November 29, 2025

“I’m like, man, ‘just don’t get caught. Don’t fumble.’ I’m winded, I’ve been playing probably every snap that game, so I’m just trying to get into the end zone,” Campbell said postgame. “As soon as I saw the ball drop, I was just thinking scoop and score, we got to get some points.”

Campbell would return the ball 61 yards for a defensive score that gave Penn State the lead with under eight minutes remaining.

The junior linebacker had one of his best games statistically on Saturday. On top of playing nearly every snap on defense, Campbell finished one tackle short of his career-high with 14, a half sack, a half tackle for loss, and, of course, the fumble recovery for a touchdown.

The fumble recovery and touchdown were both his first fumble recovery and defensive touchdown of his collegiate career.

The following drive, Rutgers was on the clock and needed a score in crunch time to retake the lead from the Nittany Lions.

Again, the Nittany Lions were pushed back from the Rutgers 25-yard line to the Penn State 27-yard line, including an incredible throw and one-handed catch to Rutgers wide receiver KJ Duff. When the Scarlet Knights were stopped for minimal yardage twice after a first down run went for eight yards, Rutgers was forced to go for a 4th-and-1 situation.

Defense gets the stop #WeAre | LIVE on @BigTenNetwork pic.twitter.com/DnKrAFDmeT

— Penn State Football (@PennStateFball) November 29, 2025

Despite the consistent yardage coming easily against the Penn State defense all night, corner Zion Tracy and Campbell stood tall and stopped Kaliakmanis’ quarterback run to turn the ball over on downs.

Grunkemeyer and Co. would go on to drive from the Penn State 28-yard line to the Rutgers 8-yard line, bleeding out the clock and winning the football game.

“When we needed a play most, we got the fumble recovery for a touchdown. We followed that up with the next series, with the fourth down stop, which really sealed the game,” interim head coach Terry Smith said postgame. “It was not pretty, but they figured out a way, and that’s football, that’s Big Ten football.”