2025 PSU vs. Villanova
Sept. 13, 3:30pm EDT, Beaver Stadium, FS1
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#2/2 PSU 52 Villanova 6
Game Flow & Summary
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Game Three
First Half
1st quarter begins—King Mack who would be making his first career start at Safety for PSU takes the opening kick from Nova at the PSU 5 and returns it 17 yards to the 22-yard line (Villanova won the toss and deferred to the 2nd half)
PSU 1st possession covers 78 yards on 12 plays and results in a touchdown—The drive begins with Trebor Pena WR on the end around the left side for 11 yards to the 33—Drew Allar QB then connects with Pena on a 14-yard pass to the 47—PSU then mixes 2 passes to Kyron Hudson WR and the running of Nick Singleton to reach the 4-yard line of Nova—Singleton carried 8 times for 34 yards on the drive including the final 5 plays (his longest run was 10 yards)—Nick capped it off with a 4-yard run off right tackle on 1st and goal for the TD (Singleton’s 36th career rushing TD)—Ryan Barker adds the PAT and Penn State leads 7-0 with 8:48 to go in the 1st period
Villanova’s 1st possession will net 15 yards on 5 plays and result in a punt—Kolin Dinkins S forced a fumble on the kick to Nova but the Wildcats recovered at their own 19—Zion Tracy CB blew up a screen pass attempt for 5-yard loss and Tony Rojas LB sacked Pat McQuaide QB for a 2-yard loss on 3rd and 7 forcing the punt—Devonte Ross WR returns the punt 13 yards to the PSU 25
PSU 2nd possession only collects 31 yards on 6 plays—PSU would reach the Nova 44-yard line on an Allar pass to Pena for a sliding grab and a pick-up of 19 yards—A false start penalty was followed by an incompletion on an Allar bomb to Devonte Ross on a post-pattern on 1st and 15—On 2nd and 15 at the Nova 49, Allar then completes a pass to himself as the ball is batted back to him by a defender and Allar advances the ball for a 5-yard gain to the Nova 44 (this was the second time Allar has caught his own pass-previous was in 4th period of 2023 Peach Bowl)—Allar’s next pass in incomplete and Gabe Nwosu gets off a short 36-yard punt for a fair catch at the Nova 8
Villanova 2nd possession will kill off the 1st quarter lasting 3 plays for minus -3 yards—Tanner Maddocks replaced the “dinged-up” McQuaide at QB for the Wildcats and Zane Durant DT welcomed him by batting down his first pass of the game—Villanova would punt to the PSU to close the quarter—33 year old Luke Larsen, the oldest active player in FBS, is under pressure from Chaz Coleman DE and gets off a short 27-yard punt that rolls out of bounds at the 32 after a favorable bounce—Penn State leads 7-0 after the 1st quarter
2nd quarter begins—PSU 3rd possession will gain only 4 yards on 4 plays and result in a field goal—Allar’s 3rd and 6 pass from the Nova 28 yard-line intended for Pena is broken up around the 15 on a nice defensive play by Jamie Tyson of Villanova, and that brings on the FG unit—Ryan Barker is good from 45 yards out (his longest FG of the season so far) and Penn State extends its lead to 10-0 with 14:22 left in the half
Villanova 3rd possession will last 53 seconds and net minus -5 yards on 3 plays—Gabe Nwosu’s 60-yard kick is returned 24 yards to the Nova 29—The drive ends on 3rd and 8 when Tony Rojas collects his 2nd sack of the game (a career best for Rojas) bringing down Maddocks for a 7-yard loss to the 24—Larsen gets off a better punt this time booting it 47 yards to the PSU 29 yard-line
PSU 4th possession is a 3-and-out—3 plays, 6 yards, 44 seconds—After a 6-yard run by Kaytron Allen, Allar misses on 2 passes and Nwosu punts it out of bounds 47 yards to the Nova 18
Villanova 4th possession sees the return of their starting QB Pat McQuaide after missing last 2 series—This will also be a 3-and-out—3 plays for 9 yards and a punt—Larsen gets off a 37-yard punt to Devonte Ross for a fair catch at the PSU 36
PSU 5th possession will cover 53 yards on 10 plays ending in a field goal—On 2nd and 10 from the 36, Singleton gets off his longest run of the game for 14 yards out to the 50—Four plays later, Allar rolls right and delivers a 22-yard pass to Luke Reynolds TE to the Nova 15 yard-line—Then, after a penalty on PSU, a nice block from Singleton springs Trebor Pena for a 9-yard run to the 11—On 3rd and 6 from the 11, Allar tries to get it to Pena at the 2 for the first down, but it’s broken up, and it’s probably one that Pena should have caught—Ryan Barker comes on and hits the 28 yard field goal and PSU leads Nova 13-0 with 6:39 to go in the half
Villanova 5th possession will be one the Cats better ones—13 plays for 45 yards—Nova will get its first 1st down without the help of a penalty on the running of Isaiah Ragland who moves the Cats to midfield—Later, just after Dani Dennis-Sutton left the field with a possible right foot issue, it’s 4th and 2 at the PSU 44, and David Avit blows right up the middle for 27 yards to the PSU 17 where Audavion Collins CB made a potential TD-saving stop—Dennis-Sutton returned after that and Nova cannot get past the 15 yard-line setting up a field goal try by Jack Barnum—He is initially good from 32 yards out, but a penalty for a block below the waist nullifies the kick—Barnum’s second try from 47 yards is hooked left and is no good—Nova remains scoreless with 1:08 left in the half, and PSU gets the ball at its 30
PSU 6th possession will be a 2-minute drill that will last 36 seconds and see the Lions move 70 yards in 7 plays for 7 points—Kaytron Allen kick-starts the drive with a 12-yard run to the 42 and out of bounds to stop the clock—5 of the next 6 plays are passes—Allar to Luke Reynolds for 9 yards (play is reviewed for Targeting penalty on Wildcats, but not confirmed)—Following an Allen run, it’s Allar to Liam Clifford WR for 11—Allar to Kyron Hudson for 11 yards to the Nova 23—On 1st and 10 at the 23, Allar fires a bullet over the middle, threading it between 2 defenders who are glued to Trebor Pena who makes a clutch catch for the 23-yard TD (it’s Pena’s 1st TD catch at PSU)—Penn State opts to go for a 2-point conversion for the third time this season, with Pena in a bubble screen right, behind the TEs Luke Reynolds and Khalil Dinkins, and the Allar pass to Pena is successful (it’s PSU’s first 2-point success of the season after 1 failed attempt and 1 other attempt called-back by penalty)—Penn State leads 21-0 with 32 seconds to go in the first half
Villanova 6th possession lasts one play to end the half—Following a touchback on the Nwosu kickoff, the Cats take a knee killing the clock—Penn State leads Villanova 21-0 at the half
PSU Defense held Nova to 18 yards passing and 51 yards rushing in the 1st half highlighted by 2 sacks from Tony Rojas
Drew Allar QB stats for 1st half: 12 of 21 passing for 149 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT
Trebor Pena WR 1st half stats: 4 receptions for 60 yards, 1 TD (23 yds. from Allar) / 2 rushes for 20 yards
Second Half
3rd Quarter begins—Nwosu kicks 65 yards to Nova’s goal line and return is 13 yards to the 13-yard line—Big hit on the return coverage by DaKaari Nelson LB
Villanova 7th possession is a 3-and-out—3 plays for a net minus-1 yards—Amare Campbell LB forces punt with a sack of McQuaide for a 5-yard loss at the 12-yard line (1st sack of season for Campbell)—Larsen 41-yard punt—Devonte Ross 5-yard return to the Nova 48
PSU 7th possession will cover 23 yards on 7 plays ending in a field goal—On 2nd and 9 from the 47, Drew Allar goes deep to Devonte Ross WR down the left side, but overthrows him at the goal line—On 3rd down with no one open, Allar picks up 16 yards on the run behind a solid block from Nick Singleton to the Nova 31 for the first down—From there, 3 more runs net only 6 yards to the 25 setting up a field goal opportunity—On 4th and 4 from the 25, Ryan Barker is good from 42 yards and Penn State adds to its lead, 24-0 with 10:02 to go in the 3rd period
Villanova 8th possession will last a single play-Following the touchback on the kickoff by Nwosu, 1st and 10 at the 25, Pat McQuaide is under heavy pressure from Dani Dennis-Sutton DE who hits his arm forcing a wobbly pass and it’s picked off by Elliot Washington II CB at the 35-yard line and returned 12 yards to the 23 (it’s Washington’s 2nd career INT/PSU’s 1st INT of 2025 by a non-DT)
PSU 8th possession doesn’t last long either—3 plays, 12 yards, 44 seconds—After a 9-yard run by Trebor Pena WR and a 3-yarder by Kaytron Allen for a first down at the Nova 11, Drew Allar blindly throws it out to the side towards Allen, and its easily picked off by Omari Bursey giving Nova the ball at the 17 (it was Allar’s 1st INT of the season/11th of his career)
Villanova 9th possession is another 3-and-out—3 plays, 1 yard, 53 seconds off the clock—LB Dom DeLuca’s pressure blows up a 2nd down pass, and the 3rd down pass long towards midfield is overthrown by McQuaide—Larsen’s punt is 41 yards to Devonte Ross for a fair catch at the PSU 41
PSU 9th possession is more to the fans’ liking—9 plays for 59 yards and a touchdown—The drive opens with an Allar throw to Andrew Rappleyea TE for 11 yards to the Nova 48—After that, it’s Singleton moving the ball on a series of mostly runs and a catch to give PSU a 1st down at the Nova 24 after a 4-yard carry up the middle on 4th and 1—Allar then passes short to his right for a wide open Luke Reynolds TE who makes the catch at the 20 and takes it to the 3 yard line and out of bounds—The 21 yard pickup gives PSU a 1st and goal from the 3—Nick Singleton finishes it off with a 3-yard run right up the middle for the TD (Nick’s 2nd rushing TD in the game/5th of the season/37th of his career)—Ryan Barker adds the PAT and Penn State now leads Villanova, 31-0 with 3:36 to go in the 3rd quarter (and after 3 quarters)
Villanova 10th possession will carry into the 4th period—Netting 16 yards on 8 plays ending in a punt—The Wildcats biggest play was the 27-yard return of the kick to their own 30—The Cats would pick up 2 first downs along the way, but the third quarter closes with a 1-yard loss and the 4th quarter begins with a 4-yard loss on a run and then Chaz Coleman DE blows up the pass attempt on 3rd and 15 forcing the punt—Devonte Ross makes the fair catch at the PSU 16
PSU 10th possession will cover 84 yards in 7 plays ending in a touchdown—After a 9-yard rush by Allen to the 25, Drew Allar finds Luke Reynolds (who had lined up as an H-back to Drew’s left) with the pass to his right at the 28, and Luke takes it 21 yards out to the PSU 46—Two runs by Kaytron Allen for 9 and 16 yards move the ball to the Nova 29—Nick Singleton gives Kaytron a rest and carries the ball 11 yards to the 18—Allen returns and finishes things off with a dash around the left side untouched for 18 yards to the endzone for the TD (his 3rd rushing TD of the season/27th of his career)—Ryan Barker gets the PAT and Penn State now leads 38-0 with 10:43 to go in the game
Villanova 11th possession is a 3-and-out—2 yards on 3 plays—A fair catch on the Ryan Barker kick sets the Cats up at their 25—2 of their 3 plays result in lost yardage, so Nova is forced to punt from its 27 on 4th and 8—Larsen’s punt is a 41-yarder to Devonte Ross at the PSU 31—Ross breaks a tackle and escapes for a 34-yard return to the Nova 35-yard line giving PSU excellent field position
PSU 11th possession will see Ethan Grunkemeyer replace Allar at QB—On 1st and 10, Grunkemeyer goes for it all, throwing deep over the middle to Liam Clifford in the back of the endzone—Nova’s Anthony Hawkins is in great position and appears to make the INT falling out of the back of the endzone—State gets a break when replay review shows Hawkins lost possession of the ball briefly as he went to the ground, so it’s ruled incomplete and not an interception—PSU goes to the ground game with Tyseer Denmark WR picking up 12 yards to the 23 and Cam Wallace RB adding 4 more to the 19—Then Grunkemeyer finds wide open Joey Schlaffer TE just over the middle at the 2-yard line for the 19-yard touchdown (it’s both the first career passing TD for Grunk & the 1st career TD reception for Schlaffer)—Ryan Barker’s PAT kick makes it Penn State 45-0 with 7:05 left in the game (this is now PSU’s second 40+ point game in 2025)
Villanova 12th possession lasts 2 plays and ends in an interception—After the touchback on the Barker kick, Tanner Maddocks returns as Nova’s QB—On 1st down, the Wildcats get 12-yards on a run, but on the next play, Maddocks is picked off at the Nova 49 by True Freshman Jahmir Joseph CB who makes a leaping grab and navigates back through heavy traffic all the way to the endzone for the 49-yard TD return (it’s the first INT and TD of his career)—This is PSU’s first pick-6 since the 2024 CFP 1st rounder vs. SMU—Ryan Barker’s PAT makes it 52-0 Penn State with 6:24 to go in the game (this is PSU’s 1st 50+ point game since 2024 vs. Kent State)
Villanova 13th possession will be a surprisingly lucky one—The Wildcats will cover 75 yards on 16 plays burning down the final 6:24 on the game clock and culminating in a touchdown on one of the craziest game-ending plays ever—It begins at the Nova 25 following the fair catch of the Barker kickoff—Key play on 3rd and 6 at the 29, Tanner Maddocks hits Braden Reed for 33 yards to the PSU 38—Later on 3rd and 4, Maddocks hits Brandon Binkowski for 11 yards to the PSU 1 yard line—State’s defense makes two run stops (including a great tackle by Alex Tatsch LB on a Maddocks keeper for a 2-yard loss) leaving Nova with 3rd and goal from the PSU 3—With 8 seconds left after a PSU timeout, Maddocks passes to Antonio Johnson who is closely guarded by Daryus Dixson CB and it is ruled incomplete on a very close call in the endzone (and video replay confirms no TD catch)—4th and goal from the 3 with 4 seconds left, Nova’s running back is called for a false start costing them 5 yards—4th and goal from the 8 with 4 seconds remaining, Tanner Maddocks rolls right, and appears to want to run, but at the sideline just before the line of scrimmage, he throws hard back across his body to the back left center of the endzone into heavy traffic where Brandon Binkowski makes one of the greatest, most improbable, leaping one-handed catches in Villanova history for the 8-yard TD (the entire play is upheld on replay review)—Clock expired, shutout over, game over—(the Villanova PAT try at the end was not attempted)—Penn State wins 52-6 to move to 3-0 to open the season and end the non-conference schedule as it moves into the first Bye Week
Penn State collected 28 first downs (none by penalty)—They were 5 of 6 in the Red Zone on 11 offensive possessions—PSU was 5 of 11 on third downs and 1 of 1 on fourth downs
Through 3 games (non-conference schedule): PSU offense is averaging 44 ppg with 2 games of 40+ points / Defense has allowed 17 total points (14 against reserves in final minute)