Penn State Dominates Nevada

Tagged under: Gameday Hub, News, Penn State, Pennsylvania Colleges

Mason Eddinger | August 30, 2025

Penn State entered the 2025 season as big favorites against Mountain West Conference team Nevada, and they didn’t disappoint.

 The news of the off-season for Penn State was the additions they made in the portal. Penn State Head Coach James Franklin admittedly said that “Penn State is not a big transfer school”, but they were able to find a plethora of production today. The trio of receivers, Trebor Pena, Kyron Hudson, and Devonte Ross, all ended up with a reception in the game, with Pena and Hudson having great games. Hudson, the USC product, was involved from the opening series and continued his production throughout the first half. Hudson had 5 catches for 75 yards and a touchdown at halftime.

Furthermore, Penn State as a whole relied heavily on the new weapons. Over 80% of Drew Allar’s passing yards went to 2025 transfers. This game was monumental for the new targets to get acclimated to live reps. Drew Allar stated at media day that the process of developing chemistry with his new receivers went “well,” and this performance further solidifies Allar’s confidence.

  For Allar, he looked as efficient as ever. In the first half, he had completed 13 of 16 passes (81%). He finished with just four incompletions on the day. In a year where all the pressure is on Allar, he passed his first test. It was clear that the additions in the receiving core helped Allar. 

  Jim Knowles decided to join Penn State as Defensive Coordinator following a national championship for Knowles at Ohio State. His first game, a smashing success. Zane Durant got an early interception from his DT spot, and that started the PSU party. Dani Dennis-Sutton forced multiple fumbles as well. Nevada had early success on drives, but when the 2nd half came around, Penn State shut them down. Nevada couldn’t find any success in the air, and QB Chubba Purdy was running for his life all afternoon. 

  As far as the running game goes, Singleton and Allen looked good, not great. Nick Singleton had just 19 yards on 8 carries, but he found the endzone twice. Kaytron Allen found more success on the ground and got into the endzone as well. The returning offensive linemen provided Allar and the running game with the appropriate blocking all afternoon.

  Ryan Barker stole the show in the special teams department. It was under a year ago when Penn State’s main fault was their special teams unit; those days are long gone. Barker was automatic and didn’t miss a kick all afternoon. Penn State also had a few good returns, but none topped that of King Mack, who returned a kick deep into Nevada territory. 

  For Penn State, it was as good a showing as they could’ve asked for. Defensively, they haven’t missed a beat. On offense, it’ll be interesting to see how the rushing attack evolves after a somewhat disappointing opening showing. As far as the aerial attack goes, Penn State fans should feel excited about what’s to come when Penn State takes on more competitive foes.

  Speaking on the win, James Franklin said, “ Overall, I was pleased with how today went. We didn’t have stupid penalties, we didn’t put the ball on the ground, I was happy with that.” Franklin added that he was disappointed in the lack of explosiveness in the offense. When speaking on the three transfer receivers, Franklin said, “Pena surprised me, I thought Hudson would lead us, but Trebor looked great. Ross looks very mature; he looks very poised.” 

Penn State will take on FIU next Saturday at Noon.

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