Analysis: Penn State's Nick Singleton staying patient amid big play drought

Nick Singleton accelerated through an open hole, crossed the end zone and let his feelings flow, slamming the ball to the ground and pumping his fists. Saturday’s 16-yard touchdown run at Illinois was a moment of relief for Singleton. It was also, believe it or not, his longest rush of the season so far.

“I just ran for my life. I saw green grass, and I just ran,” Singleton said after Penn State’s 30-13 win. “Once I scored, all my emotions were out.”

Singleton wanted to help his team win. But he also cherished seeing that green grass.

Singleton has been kept in check through three games. Coming off a season in which he led all Power Five players with seven rushes of 40-plus yards, Singleton has come close to breaking a big one. It just hasn’t happened yet.

Instead, Singleton and Kaytron Allen have been grinding for hard yards. The dynamic duo has seven touchdowns and is averaging 4.6 yards per carry. But neither of them have a rush of 20 yards or more.

This time last year, all anyone could talk about was Singleton’s speed. The standout freshman had 179 yards in a Week 2 win over Ohio, breaking loose for a 70-yard score. Seven days later, he had a pair of 50-yard runs at Auburn.

Many expected to see much of the same from Singleton to start this season. But in three games, the former Governor Mifflin standout has 153 yards (51 per game). On Saturday, Singleton had only 37 rushing yards.

Singleton credited Illinois’ defense. The Illini loaded the box and thrived thanks to disruptive play from its front four, especially defensive tackle Jer’Zhan Newton. But Singleton knows, even against tough fronts, the Nittany Lions are capable of more.

“Me and Kaytron, we want the long runs to get in the end zone. That’s really what we want to do,” Singleton said. “Coach (Ja’Juan) Seider always preaches that hard runs are really good runs, too. We have to keep the pace because we’ll break out one of these times. … We’ll break one eventually. I’m just going to be patient.”

Perhaps that patience will pay off in the White Out against Iowa.

Final thoughts

• As the postgame celebrations commenced with the traveling fans, freshman linebacker Tony Rojas hung back and was still asking defensive coordinator Manny Diaz questions. That’s the kind of thing you want to see if you’re Penn State. The preseason standout has a bright future.

• For the second week in a row, the Nittany Lions were a tad undisciplined. Penn State was flagged seven times for 70 yards at Illinois after picking up seven penalties against Delaware. Got to clean that up.

• Penn State’s secondary entered the season with four starter-caliber safeties. So far, the best pairing seems to be KJ Winston and Zakee Wheatley. That’s not to say Jaylen Reed and Keaton Ellis aren’t good players; they are. But Wheatley and Winston were all over the field on Saturday and really fed off each other.

• It wasn’t a banner day for the offensive line, which saw several in-game changes. Vega Ioane spelled JB Nelson and Sal Wormley at both guard spots while Drew Shelton came in for Caedan Wallace at right tackle. Regardless of the setup, the o-line struggled, especially against Newton.

• The Nittany Lions have their placekicker. Alex Felkins, the walk-on transfer from Columbia, started over Sander Sahaydak and nailed three field goals (20, 28, 45 yards). Felkins also had a 52-yarder blocked. But the fact that James Franklin tried it at all shows that he has confidence in Felkins.

• Liam Clifford had a couple nice contributions. He hauled in a 33-yard rope from Allar; it was a better throw but still a good catch. His route-running also freed up KeAndre Lambert-Smith for a first-down catch-and-run. Considering who his brother is, Clifford’s knowledge of the offense is as good as you’d expect.

• There’s more to being a tight end than catching the ball. But Theo Johnson has been a non-factor in the passing game. Through three games, he has four catches for 46 yards on seven targets. The Nittany Lions have to get him more involved.