Peach Bowl Takeaways: Penn State football looking for answers heading into offseason

Penn State football took its lumps in the Peach Bowl, falling to the Ole Miss Rebels 38-25 in a game that was much less competitive than the final score indicated. The loss was extremely frustrating for everyone around the Nittany Lions program, and will leave James Franklin and his staff looking for answers heading into the offseason. But what did we learn about Penn State in the game that we can carry into 2024? Our Peach Bowl takeaways break down all the action from Saturday.

Youth at CB proved costly

Coming into the Peach Bowl, it had been reported for several weeks that Johnny Dixon was expected to opt out. However, a late opt-out by Kalen King left Penn State thinner than expected at CB. With two normal starters out, that left Daequan Hardy as the only usual starter at the position.

Sophomore Cam Miller had a solid amount of time this season in rotation and played relatively well in this game, picking up 5 tackles and a pass deflection. But he still struggled at times with the dynamic Ole Miss passing attack. Miller finished the season with 24 tackles, 3 sacks, and an interception this year. Miller will most likely be a key starter going forward.

True freshman Zion Tracy was thrown into the fire in this game and was often exposed by both Caden Prieskorn and Tre Harris of Ole Miss, who both went over 130 yards receiving. It isn’t really Tracy’s fault; the Rebels passing attack is hard to stop for even experienced corners. Nonetheless, it was clear that Lane Kiffin was targeting the young corner early and often. I think Tracy has the tools to be a really good corner for the Nittany Lions moving forward, but this will certainly be a game to learn from.

The same can be said for true freshman Elliot Washington, who also played significantly more snaps in this game. Both freshmen had only played in 4 games this season against Delaware, Illinois, Northwestern, and UMass. While they got some valuable experience in the bowl game, they will have to step up heading into next season.

Lack of dynamic WR stalled the offense, again

It seemed like WR production had been on the decline the further the season went on. Saturday against the Rebels was probably the worst performance of the season for the room.

The first catch by a WR didn’t occur until Liam Clifford made a grab early in the 4^th quarter. Every other reception before that was from either a TE or RB. Most of the WR action came after the game was already out of hand and was with the Ole Miss defense playing soft coverage.

Harrison Wallace III finished with 4 catches for 67 yards. Liam Clifford snagged 3 for 25 yards. Other than that, the room was especially quiet throughout the game. With a  not-so-flashy recruiting class coming in for next season, getting some elite WRs in the transfer portal could make or break whether Penn State football can make the College Football Playoff next season.

Late opt-out decisions and stars on snap counts

Everyone knew going in that Chop Robinson had opted out and was preparing for the NFL Draft, as he projects to be a potential top 10 pick. As already mentioned, Dixon was also expected to be out. But up until gameday, those were the only two confirmed.

After hearing all month that LT Olu Fashanu and CB Kalen King were still practicing with the team and preparing to play in the bowl, it was looking like the Nittany Lions would be entering at almost full strength. That’s something that can’t be said often in the modern bowl era.

However, despite dressing, both Fashanu and King opted out of the Peach Bowl on gameday. This caused some outrage within the Penn State football fanbase. Not because they necessarily opted out; after all, both are expected to be 1^st round picks, but rather that they did it so late. In addition, Curtis Jacobs, Adisa Isaac, and Theo Johnson saw limited action in the 2^nd half as they were on a snap count by the coaching staff to try and avoid injury before they head to the NFL Draft.

Penn State fans have a right to be frustrated with the way all of this went down. Four key starters didn’t play at all in the game, with 3 more only playing for the 1^st half. Add in star LB Abdul Carter getting banged up in the 1^st half, and the Nittany Lions never really stood a chance.

Many fans were upset that they had spent all the money on tickets, travel, and hotels for the bowl game and were led on with the impression that the full roster would be playing. While the Peach Bowl had a full stadium, other games like the Fiesta Bowl and Orange Bowl struggled to fill seats with a lot of opt-outs. As the 12-team Playoff begins next season, the excitement for non-Playoff bowl games continues to dwindle.

Run game was effective early in Peach Bowl

The run game was extremely effective early in the game for Penn State football. Nicholas Singleton broke runs for 11, 18, 9, and 6 yards on the opening drive. Kaytron Allen picked up 5 and 24 yards on his first two carries. But for whatever reason, the play calling changed, and multiple pass plays were called inside the red zone. After the Ole Miss defense realized that the Penn State passing game wasn’t anything to be afraid of, the Rebels began to play up on the line of scrimmage.

The lack of contribution from the WRs was what really shut down the run game in the 2^nd half. It looked like Singleton and Allen had a chance to each go over 100 yards early, but as mentioned, the Ole Miss defense adjusted.

Singleton finished with 8 carries for 50 yards, while Allen finished with 10 carries for 41 yards. A positive that can come from this game is that Singleton looks to have returned to his explosive self and even had a 48-yard receiving TD from Beau Pribula late in the 1^st half.

Drew Allar looked rattled

There hasn’t been a QB controversy much this season, but after a poor bowl performance, there were rumblings on social media and from the stands inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Multiple chants and cries of “We want Beau” broke out in the Penn State section of the upper deck as fans became frustrated with the 3 consecutive 3-and-outs to begin the 2^nd half.

Drew Allar finished 19-39 for 295 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception. His interception was certainly a head-scratcher and led to a viral moment from a Penn State fan in the stands, although it ultimately appeared like he couldn’t fully step into the throw due to pressure.

Overall, though, most of his numbers came late in the game in garbage time, and he missed multiple open receivers during the game where the scheme was good, but the throws weren’t. Many Penn State football fans wanted to see Beau Pribula in the 2^nd half just to see if he could throw a different look at Ole Miss. Running read option between Pribula and both Singleton and Allen could have been a different look.

It makes sense why the coaching staff didn’t make the change. Allar has been the guy all season and, overall, has the most talent out of all the QBs on the roster. Just imagine the chaos that would have ensued this offseason if Pribula had entered and pulled off a come-from-behind victory. It is a different reality that we will never know, but the QB discussion could still heat up this offseason, regardless.

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