In the buildup to Penn State’s Week 3 clash against Villanova at Beaver Stadium, Nittany Lion head coach James Franklin said running back Nick Singleton, a preseason first-team All-American, “was thinking too much.”
“I think he’s such a good kid,” Franklin said Monday. “He’s so coachable. He’s trying to do all the things that are asked from him. But again, that’s not what Saturdays are for. Saturday is just go play, let it rip. And we had a good conversation about that on Sunday.”
Despite the dialogue they had, Singleton continued making many of the mistakes that plagued him throughout the first two games during Penn State’s 52-6 win over Villanova on Saturday. He uncharacteristically struggled to break tackles and frequently bounced outside despite open lanes up the middle. He finished with 20 carries for 84 yards and a long of 14, though his yards per carry were below 4 until his final run of the game, an 11-yard burst against a worn-down Wildcat defense.
It’s not an isolated incident for Singleton, who averaged 2.4 and 5.8 yards per carry in the first two games of the season, but this week’s matchup featured 20 carries, almost as many as the first two games combined (21). After the game, Singleton said he thought his performance was improved from previous weeks.
“I just thought I was trusting my instincts, not thinking too much, you know, not trying to be perfect,” Singleton said. “You know, you’re gonna make mistakes, not every play, but like certain plays, but just not thinking too much, just letting the plays come to me.”
It appeared from the outside Penn State was trying to get Singleton activated by force-feeding him carries, though Franklin dismissed that notion post-game.
“I know sometimes when the numbers play out that way, it may seem like that or feel like that … It’s not like Andy (Kotelnicki) when he’s calling the game is looking to see who the running back is,” Franklin said. “… That was not the plan coming into the game. It’s just how those drives played out.”
Regardless of Franklin’s comments, the stats don’t lie. Kaytron Allen had half as many touches (10) but more than twice as many yards per carry (8.6) and appeared to be the better back from the first time he touched the ball — in the second quarter.
Singleton had almost as many carries (eight) on Penn State’s first drive of the game as Allen got the entire game. And despite the lopsided nature of the matchup, Franklin opted to keep the starters on the field late into the matchup, with Cam Wallace’s one carry as the only other action by a running back.
“Yeah, that’s my mentality, you know, I want the ball,” Singleton said after the game. “I wanna do anything possible for my team.”
The duo have gone back and forth since arriving on campus together as class of 2022 freshmen, with Singleton — a five-star recruit and the Gatorade National High School Player of the Year — earning the bulk of the attention. He had more rushing yards as a freshman and junior, but Allen led during their sophomore seasons.
Now over three seasons in, they’ve put up eerily similar production, with Allen sitting at 3,150 career rushing yards and Singleton at 3,091 as they both climb the program leaderboard. Through three games this season, Allen sits at 8.0 yards per carry while Singleton is at 4.4.
Singleton will likely find his groove as the season progresses, but it’s clear who the hot hand is entering the bye week, which is followed by one of the most pivotal matchups of the college football season in what’s expected to be a top-five matchup against Oregon.
While Franklin attributes the disparity in touches to game flow and Singleton feels he’s solved his overthinking issues, the play on the field says otherwise. In order to compete against a Ducks squad that has obliterated its first three opponents — including two from power conferences — by an average score of 54-10, Penn State can’t risk the offense’s success by hoping Singleton returns to form when he hasn’t shown it this season.
The answer is clear: Allen needs to be the primary back in two weeks when Oregon visits Happy Valley for the White Out to maximize the Nittany Lions’ chances of success. Things may change down the road, but Allen is the safer play in a game that needs minimal risk.
