Penn State hasn’t gotten much production from its punt and kickoff returns this season, which has contributed to its poor field position.
The Nittany Lions rank 121st out of 133 FBS teams in punt returns with a paltry 3.7 average under first-year special teams coordinator Justin Lustig.
Penn State started 55 of its 75 possessions from its 30-yard line or worse. Only six practices started in midfield.
“It starts with having a punt returner who has caught a lot of balls in games and returned balls and made plays,” Penn State coach James Franklin said. “We had some musical chairs trying to find the guy.”
Kaden Saunders began this season as the primary punt returner after suffering an indefinite injury during training camp. He made mostly decent catches, returning only four punts for 25 yards before being injured again.
Zion Tracy took over from Saunders and totaled 14 yards on six returns.
“Don’t get me wrong, I’d like to field more of those balls and be more aggressive,” Franklin said. “But above all, knock on wood, we didn’t turn the ball over in this category. Now we need to take the next step. We need to start giving back more.
Last year, the Lions made a midseason change when Daequan Hardy replaced Saunders and averaged 14.6, including two touchdowns against Massachusetts. They finished tied for 24th nationally.
Penn State also struggles with its kickoff returns, averaging just 18.1 yards and ranking 97th. Nick Singleton is averaging 18.7 yards after averaging over 24 yards in each of the last two seasons.
Allar recognized: Penn State junior Drew Allar made the top spot for two national quarterback awards.
Allar was named Thursday as one of the top 10 candidates for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, given annually to the top junior or senior quarterback ready to graduate with his class.
Allar is ranked eighth nationally in passing efficiency with a 71.3 completion percentage, 1,640 yards, 12 touchdowns and four interceptions.
The other quarterbacks selected are Carson Beck of Georgia, Jaxson Dart of Mississippi, Quinn Ewers of Texas, Dillon Gabriel of Oregon, Will Howard of Ohio State, Cade Klubnik of Clemson, Kurtis Rourke of Indiana, Shedeur Sanders of Colorado and Miami’s Cam Ward. .
The winner will be announced on December 6.
Earlier this week, Allar was one of 35 players named to the Davey O’Brien Quarterback Award class of 2024.
Sixteen semi-finalists will be named on November 12 before three finalists are announced on November 26. The winner will be announced Dec. 12 during the College Football Awards broadcast on ESPN.
Formal complaints: Ohio State coach Ryan Day praised the Big Ten’s decision to overturn the targeting call on linebacker Arvell Reese in a win over Nebraska.
The Buckeyes appealed to the conference they weren’t targeting. Ohio State announced that the Big Ten overturned the penalty, which would have prevented Reese from participating in the first half of Saturday’s game against Penn State.
“It was a good challenge for our defense,” Day said. “We didn’t get that call. We had to come off the field and win the game and we did it. This is the biggest lesson.
Three weeks ago, Day and the Buckeyes were complaining about the end of their 32-31 loss to Oregon.
They thought there should have been time on the clock after quarterback Will Howard slipped to set up a potential game-winning field goal. But the referees determined that time was up.
“I don’t know what’s coming Saturday (at Penn State),” Day said. “I don’t expect to get a lot of calls because it doesn’t seem to happen by chance for us. We must win the match and leave no doubt. There is nothing we can do about the nature of these calls.
