Nittany Lions bounce back with white-out win

Center County, Pa. (WHP) – “Another great crowd,” boasted James Franklin at the start of his postgame press conference on Saturday. “The White Out is fantastic.”

More than 110,000 fans cheered as Penn State took the field and promptly welcomed the Washington Huskies to Beaver Stadium with a 35-6 victory. The Nittany Lions dominated the game in every way, outrebounding Washington 486-193 yards, including 266-74 rushing yards. The Nittany Lions capitalized on 10 of their third-down opportunities and held their opponents to 4:13 on third downs.

“The game was won on third down,” Franklin said. “We were third with 77% out of 30.”

Junior quarterback Drew Allar was efficient, going 20/28 for 220 yards and connecting with Julian Fleming for a touchdown to give Penn State a 28-0 halftime lead. Superstar tight end Tyler Warren continued his record-breaking campaign, adding two rushing touchdowns to his team-high eight catches. Warren also had 75 receiving yards, giving him 681 receiving yards this season. On his final catch of the game, he passed Mike Gesicki for the most receiving yards in a single season by a Nittany Lion tight end.

“I don’t understand how this guy can’t win the Mackey Award,” Franklin said. The John Mackey Award is presented each year to the best tight end in college football.

The Huskies traveled over 2,000 miles to play their new conference opponent and were unable to generate much offense until the third quarter. In that quarter, they outgained Penn State by 16 yards and scored their only three points of the quarter on a 24-yard field goal by Grady Gross. Will Rogers had a passing percentage of 10/13 but only managed 59 yards through the air. He was replaced by true freshman Demond Williams Jr., who led the Huskies in their only two scoring drives of the game.

But the real show took place off the field as Penn State played its annual white-out game in its Week 11 win.

“There’s nothing like it,” said a Penn State University freshman. “I feel incredible. First White Out game, I’m so excited,” said another.

This year marked the 20th anniversary of the Happy Valley classic. Beaver Stadium has a capacity of 106,572, but this victory was seen by 110,233 Nittany Lion students, fans, alumni and everyone in between. The win gives Penn State a 12-8 all-time record in the annual competition. They also extended their white-out winning streak to five games, dating back to 2019 (the game was canceled in 2020).

“One of the best sporting events, not just football. One of the best sporting events there is,” Franklin said.