MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — As the officials turned and faced West Virginia’s captains following an opening coin toss that had gone the home team’s way, the words of senior safety Aubrey Burks reverberated around Mountaineer Field courtesy of a referee’s microphone.
“We want the ball,” Burks said in a moment of confidence that was broadcast across the video boards at either end of the stadium. “And we wanna go score.”
Once, twice, three times, Burks repeated himself until the referee pointed both sets of players toward the sidelines as kickoff approached. The Mountaineers arrived for Saturday’s nationally televised opener brimming with confidence after closing the 2023 campaign with five victories in six games, stamped by a 20-point win over North Carolina in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl last December. A conference record of 6-3 and an overall mark of 9-4 were enough to spark optimism, excitement and a contract extension for head coach Neal Brown.
But choosing to receive the opening kickoff did little in West Virginia’s quest to follow through on the intention Burks had so publicly outlined. Four possessions came and went before the Mountaineers mustered any points at all, and even then, after turning the ball over twice in the first quarter alone, they settled for a lowly field goal. And field goals were never going to be enough against a new-look, new-age Penn State offense that began to unlock the potential of former five-star quarterback Drew Allar (11-of-17 for 216 yards and three TDs).
Under the direction of first-year offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki, whom head coach James Franklin plucked from Kansas, the Nittany Lions finally began to roar. There were chunk plays through the air from Allar to wideouts Omari Evans (two catches, 55 yards) and Harrison Wallace III (five catches, 117 yards, two TDs). There were chunk plays on the ground with tailbacks Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen. There were chunk plays on either side of a weather delay that kept both teams in their locker rooms for 2 hours, 19 minutes between the second and third quarters. There were enough chunk plays to send swaths of the 62,084 fans home long before the final seconds elapsed.
The 34-12 win was everything Franklin and Penn State could have hoped for in a high-profile opener against a Power-4 opponent. Here are some quick takeaways from Milan Puskar Stadium:
Early difference
A mistimed snap that appeared to catch Allar by surprise on his team’s opening possession gifted the Mountaineers terrific field position just outside the red zone with 10:38 remaining in the first quarter. It was the first of four West Virginia drives that either began or advanced inside the Penn State 30-yard line during the first two quarters, the combined results of which were only six points: a pair of field goals by kicker Michael Hayes II from distances of 38 yards and 39 yards, respectively. And each successive drive that failed to produce a touchdown siphoned a bit more energy from what was, at least originally, a fairly raucous crowd.
West Virginia’s first play after Allar’s early fumble quickly devolved into disaster when the snap from center Brandon Yates struck the motion man and caromed deep into the backfield, with Penn State eventually ripping possession away from quarterback Garrett Greene. The next Mountaineer foray into Nittany Lions’ territory was thwarted by a failed “tush push” on fourth-and-short as Greene was rebuffed at the line of scrimmage. Two additional drives that gained 98 combined yards across the middle and latter stages of the second quarter stalled at the outer edge of the red zone.
Kotelnicki’s offense was far more purposeful with each possession that ventured into West Virginia territory. The Nittany Lions punctuated a 10-play, 71-yard march with a 20-yard touchdown from Allar to Allen and capped a three-play, 73-yard gut punch when Allar zipped a beautiful throw to Wallace III for another score with :06 remaining in the second quarter, extending the Penn State lead to 14.
Drew Allar connects with Harrison Wallace III who drags his feet for a TD, extending Penn State’s lead over West Virginia
Play of the game
Only a fraction of the crowd remained when play finally resumed at 4:23 p.m. ET and the Nittany Lions leading by 14 points. For the West Virginia faithful that remained — all of them having huddled beneath the bleachers for more than two hours of lightning and torrential rain — it was understood just how pivotal the opening possession of the third quarter would be. If Penn State reached the end zone and pushed its advantage north of 20, it was unlikely the Mountaineers would have any chance to claw their way back into contention based on the anemic offensive output from the first half.
A pair of 10-yard scrambles from Allar and a successful swing pass to Singleton moved the Nittany Lions across midfield with relative ease. And that’s when Singleton punctuated Penn State’s victory with a 40-yard touchdown run through the middle of West Virginia’s defense. Two pulling linemen cleared a path that left Singleton untouched until he reached the third level, where the flailing arm of safety Anthony Wilson Jr. was nowhere near enough to slow the acceleration. Singleton raced downfield and into the end zone as Penn State’s lead swelled to an insurmountable 21-point margin.
The one-two punch of Singleton and Allen combined for 167 rushing yards (134 rushing, 33 receiving) and two touchdowns.
Key stat
One of the driving factors behind Franklin’s decision to pursue Kotelnicki as his sixth offensive coordinator in 11 seasons was because of the reputation for explosive plays at Kansas, where the Jayhawks had developed into a high-octane attack under Kotelnicki’s guidance. During a three-year stretch from 2021-23, the Jayhawks ranked 12th nationally in percentage of plays gaining at least 20 yards (8.3%) and 15th in percentage of passing plays gaining at least 30 yards (3.9%). Kansas surpassed 40 points nine times in that span and topped 50 points five times, even as nagging injuries to starting quarterback Jalon Daniels tested the offense’s adaptability.
Those types of field-tilting gains revealed themselves early and often in Kotelnicki’s debut against West Virginia on Saturday, with Allar and the team’s high-level running back duo shredding the Mountaineers in more ways, and phases, than one. Allar only needed 11 completions to exceed 200 passing yards and find the end zone three times through the air. Singleton averaged nearly 9 yards per carry on his first 13 attempts, two of which gained 40 yards and one of which found the end zone. Wallace topped 100 receiving yards for the first time in his career on just five receptions.
By the 8:13 mark of the fourth quarter — when the Nittany Lions began sending droves of backups onto the field — Kotelnicki’s offense was still averaging an incredible 8.4 yards per play.
What’s next for Penn State?
Departing West Virginia with a thoroughly impressive road victory positions the Nittany Lions for a potential climb in the national rankings in the coming weeks. Not only will Penn State be a heavy favorite in its next four games against Bowling Green, Kent State, Illinois and UCLA — the last two of which are conference opponents — but they also won’t have to leave the friendly confines of Beaver Stadium. A quartet of home dates keeps the Nittany Lions in Pennsylvania until mid-October, at which point they’ll fly to California for what should be a high-profile matchup with Big Ten newcomer USC. By then, Franklin’s team should be 5-0 overall, 2-0 in the league and squarely in the conversation to reach the College Football Playoff for the first time as the format expands to 12 teams. And if Saturday’s offensive explosion against the Mountaineers is any indication of where Kotelnicki can take his unit in the coming weeks, then it might be worth including Penn State in discussions about legitimate contenders for the Big Ten championship and the national championship.
What’s next for West Virginia?
After an opener in which Penn State threw for 199 yards and three touchdowns in the first half alone, the priority for Brown and defensive coordinator Jordan Lesley between now and Week 2 should be solidifying a leaky secondary. The Mountaineers ranked 86th nationally and eighth in the Big 12 in passing defense last season despite having an all-conference cornerback in Beanie Bishop Jr., whose 24 passes defended (four INTs, 20 breakups) led the country. But Bishop is now playing for the Pittsburgh Steelers, and West Virginia’s remaining corners struggled to slow the Nittany Lions’ downfield passing attack, especially without the benefit of a viable pass rush. Northwestern transfer Garnett Hollis Jr., who drew the primary assignment against Wallace, was beaten for a 17-yard completion on a drive that ended with Penn State reaching the end zone and later surrendered a back-shoulder touchdown that broke the game open shortly before halftime. West Virginia should have an easier challenge next Saturday against Albany.
Michael Cohen covers college football and basketball for FOX Sports with an emphasis on the Big Ten. Follow him at @Michael_Cohen13.
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