State College, Pa. — Penn State head coach James Franklin encouraged Penn State fans to bring their famous White-Out energy to Beaver Stadium on Saturday night, and they certainly delivered.
Dressed in white, faces painted, and pom-poms in hand, the crowd of 109,911 fans helped energize the Nittany Lions in their Big Ten opener. The charged atmosphere aided Penn State as they pulled away in the second half to defeat No. 19 Illinois 21-7.
Running back Nick Singleton led the charge with 102 rushing yards and a touchdown, while Kaytron Allen contributed 94 yards and a score. No. 9 Penn State (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) took control after Singleton’s 4-yard touchdown run on their opening second-half drive, extending the lead to 14-7. The defense then tightened, halting Illinois’ offensive efforts for the remainder of the game.
“It was an incredible environment,” Franklin said. “The fans had a real impact on the game, causing timeouts, false starts, and even bad snaps.”
Penn State’s defense took full advantage, forcing four punts, recovering a fumble, and capping the night with an interception by A.J. Harris late in the fourth quarter. After scoring on their opening drive, Illinois (4-1, 1-1) struggled to gain ground, managing only 25 rushing yards for the rest of the game. They were sacked seven times and tackled behind the line of scrimmage on 13 plays.
Both teams traded touchdowns on their first drives but then stalled throughout the remainder of the first half. Illinois confidently marched 75 yards on its opening drive, aided by two third-down conversions and a late hit, setting up Luke Altmyer’s 4-yard touchdown pass to Carson Goda.
The Nittany Lions responded quickly. In just eight plays spanning 4:02, Drew Allar and Singleton’s big runs set up tight end Tyler Warren’s leaping 3-yard touchdown, tying the game at 7-7.
Before halftime, Penn State’s offense drove deep into Illinois territory but came up short at the 23-yard line, with kicker Sander Sahaydak missing a 40-yard field goal. Illinois then had a prime opportunity to retake the lead, driving down to Penn State’s 2-yard line. However, a mishandled snap on first down forced Altmyer to retreat, followed by a sack and an intentional grounding penalty on third down.
The Illini’s struggles were compounded by a false start before a field goal attempt. Kicker David Olano’s 45-yard retry missed the mark, one of five pre-snap penalties that hampered Illinois throughout the game.
UP NEXT:
Illinois: Plays Purdue on Oct. 12 on home.
Penn State: Hosts UCLA on Saturday.
