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Penn State and Purdue squared in a game that resulted in another lopsided defeat for Purdue. At this point, the Boilermakers appear destined for one of its worst finishes in program history while the Nittany Lions are on the doorstep of the College Football Playoff.
By the time James Franklin’s team called off the starters, it was already established as a blowout of epic proportions. The Nittany Lions racked up over 500 yards of offense, did not turn the ball over, averaged right at 7 yards per carry and held Purdue to 5-for-14 on 3rd down.
Simply put, it was the kind of textbook performance in the 49-10 win that Penn State fans want to see. And it’s the unfortunate reality Purdue fans are now accustomed to under head coach Ryan Walters.
No matter what side of this game you were on, here are the key takeaways from Week 12:
Tyler Warren’s masterpiece
The odds of a tight end winning the Heisman Trophy are slim at best. But if there is a player who deserves consideration, it’s undoubtedly Tyler Warren.
Penn Stat’s do-it-all offensive weapon was a star from start to finish in this one. Well, at least until the Nittany Lions called off the starters in the blowout.
During the first half, Warren recorded a touchdown catch and also started a fantastic double pass trick play from the quarterback position. That trick play resulted in a quick pass back to Warren in a TE screen with plenty of room to run.
In the second half, Warren added to his tally with a 48-yard carry off a direct snap.
By the time Warren exited the game, he was Penn State’s leading receiver and the team’s leading rusher. He finished the game with 8 catches for 127 yards and a touchdown while adding 63 yards and 3 carries with another touchdown on the ground.
It is Warren’s 3rd game of the season with 100+ receiving yards and his 5th game with 7+ catches. Warren is also on a string of 3 straight games with 3 carries on the ground. It is also his first game of the season with a rushing and receiving touchdown in the same game.
Drew Allar near-perfect execution
Drew Allar has been working on improving his accuracy that was a problem during his first season as the starter last year. He has done just that, completing 70.3% of his passes this season entering Saturday.
Allar’s showing against Purdue was also his most efficient of the season. In fact, the QB had more touchdowns (3) than incompletions (2) after finishing 17-for-19 for 247 yards without a turnover.
If you aren’t aware, that’s an 89% for Allar, by far his highest of the season and the highest for any game he started in his career. His previous high was an 84.6% passing mark in last year’s game against FCS foe Delaware.
Allar also produced 22 rushing yards in the game as Penn State was firing on all cylinders and looking to roll into the Playoff.
Purdue approaching horrific history
Purdue found the end zone in this one, albeit against Penn State’s B-squad late in the game. That means the Boilermakers have now been outscored 129-10 against Oregon, Ohio State and Penn State, and the team is now 1-9 overall with 2 games left to play.
Ryan Walters’ team will undoubtedly be an underdog at Michigan State next week and at No. 5 Indiana in the season-ending rivalry in Week 14. So, let’s assume just for a minute that the favorites hold and Purdue plummets to 1-11 to end the year.
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How would this season stack up with others in program history?
Since schedules expanded to 12 regular-season games, the Boilermakers have just one season with a lone win. That came over a decade ago when Purdue went 1-11 under Darrell Hazell in 2013.
Purdue also has just 2 seasons since the 1940s without at least 2 wins. The aforementioned 2013 season is one, and the other came in 1993 with a 1-10 season under Jim Colletto.
No matter how you slice it, Purdue has been arguably the worst power conference team in 2024, and it’s hard to see Walters finding a turnaround moving forward.
Paul is a lifelong fan and student of all things college football. He has been covering college football since 2017 and the B1G since 2018.