Ohio State football: 3 reasons Buckeyes will beat Penn State in Week 8
By TJ Heyder
2. Penn State is vulnerable as a passing offense
The Nittany Lions’ are more than delighted to have Drew Allar after their recent carousel of underwhelming quarterbacks, but he’s still shown signs of growing pains in year two. Penn State’s dynamic running back duo of Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen has lightened the load for the young signal caller, but it hasn’t created the big plays in the air as many expected.
Allar has attempted the least amount of 20-plus yard throws in the entire conference this year. When you start to realize the amount of lackluster offensive units the Big Ten possesses, it really paints the picture of how low the staff’s confidence is in their passing game. It’s also to be noted that the Nittany Lions only have one receiver over the 200-yard mark on the season, which is KeAndre Lambert-Smith.
Second option Trey Wallace has been in and out of the lineup this year, and will look to help Lambert-Smith revive the passing attack on Saturday.
This stacks up well for Ohio State whose defense is much improved from 2022. A defense that was notorious for giving up big plays last year has done a sound job at limiting them through six games. The secondary, led by first round potential cornerback Denzel Burke, has been an area of strength for this unit. Even if Burke is unable to play due to injury, I believe this a mismatch in the Buckeyes’ favor.