Allar, young RBs have good day in White romp
Martin sparkles in first outing with two TDs
Penn State’s return to Beaver Stadium was hardly a contest, as Team White rolled to a 27-0 victory against Team Bluein Saturday’s Blue-White Game.
In the absence of starters Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen,Penn State’s young runningbacks put on a show.
True freshman Quinton Martin Jr. made the biggest name for himself Saturday. He finished with six carries for 34 yards and two touchdowns — a 9-yard run in the second quarter and a 12yarderin the fourth.
Martin, a Belle Vernon native, was a 4-star recruit in the 2024 recruiting class and flashed that pedigree in his firstgame action.
“He’s learned the offense really well,” coach James Franklin said. “I do think he’s got really good vision, but I think between now and West Virginia, he’s got a lot of work todo, and I think he’ll do it.”
Redshirt freshmen London Montgomery and Cam Wallace also had their moments. Montgomery hit a nasty juke move on an 11-yard scamper, while Wallace ran through contactat 5.1 yards a pop.
Quarterback Drew Allar played the full game for Team White and looked solid, going 15 of 32 for 202 yards and a touchdown to tight end Andrew Rappleyea. Allar and wide receiver Harrison Wallace III, likely a starting combination next season, hooked upfor 72 yards on five catches
“Overall, we just did a really good job of taking what the defense was giving us, and the receivers did a good job of getting open today,” Allar said.
Team Blue quarterbacks Beau Pribula and Ethan Grunkemeyer struggled, going a combined 9 of 18 for 36 yards and two interceptions. Safety Zakee Wheatley picked off Pribula on an errant pass, and defensive end Amin Vanover intercepted a botched screen pass from Grunkemyer.
TeamBlue mustered just 69 total yards and four first downs, but it had standouts defensively. Cornerback A.J. Harris, a transfer from Georgia, racked up seven tackles, two for loss, and a pass breakup.
Defensive ends Jameial Lyons and Joseph Mupoyi, cornerback Kolin Dinkins andlinebacker Winston Yates hadone sack apiece.
“Obviously some things to clean up, but overall it was really good,” Allar said. “Just looking forward to getting backto work and just building off what we laid down this spring.”
Key stat
Seven receivers combined for 13 catches Saturday, but the Blue-White Game didn’t shed much light on Penn State’sreceiving corps.
Lost in the ineptitude of Team Blue’s offense was prized transfer receiver Julian Fleming, who was limited to just one catch for 5 yardsin the first quarter.
Team White saw much more success. On top of Wallace’s big day, Omari Evans, Kaden Saunders and Liam Cliffordeach had chunk plays.
Franklin said the receiver corps “took a step” this spring and will need to take another stepin summer to reach its potential.
“I’ve had all the faith in the world in our wide receivers in terms of talent and ability … We have belief in those guys. We believe they’re ready to take the next step,” Franklin said.
Quotable
Sophomore linebacker Tony Rojas shared the secret to his one-year bulk. He came inat 197 pounds as a freshman last January, and he said Saturday that he’s all the way upto 240 pounds.
“I’d just say a lot of Chipotle —extra chicken,” Rojas said.
Rojas, who’s a favorite to start at linebacker next year, saidhe’s been motivated to get bigger and stronger since he was “ran over” in last year’s UMassgame.
On top of his physical growth, Rojas is growing mentally as a leader both on and off the field. Some of his teammates have taken notice of the young linebacker’s strides.
“He’s starting to understand the game a little bit more mentally and what he has to do in certain situations, whether it’s pass rush, stopping the run, dropping into coverage … he’s gonna be really good for us this year,” defensiveend Abdul Carter said.
Up next
Penn State’s focus will shift to roster management, as the spring transfer portal will open Tuesday and close April 30.
One name to watch during the transfer window is receiver KeAndre LambertSmith, who’s been away from the team this week, including Saturday’s game. Franklin, who declined to comment on Lambert-Smith’s status, said it will be an “interesting coupleof weeks.”