Penn State advanced to 3-0 to conclude its nonconference slate, downing Villanova 52-6 on Saturday in Beaver Stadium after a sluggish start offensively.
The Nittany Lions got plenty of players into the game late, including some for their first action of the season.
Here’s a breakdown of Penn State’s snap counts from the contest, according to PFF, and what it means for the team.
*Season total in parentheses
Quarterbacks
Drew Allar: 66 (181)
Ethan Grunkemeyer 4 (27)
Jaxon Smolik 0 (1)
With the nonconference slate over, it’ll be tougher to find opportunities to get Grunkemeyer and Smolik into games. Unless Smolik can surpass Grunkemeyer for the QB2 role this season, he may finish the year with just one snap, which came in the season opener against Nevada.
Wide receivers
Kyron Hudson 56 (153)
Trebor Peña 41 (133)
Devonte Ross 40 (92)
Liam Clifford 20 (65)
Koby Howard 4 (26)
Tyseer Denmark 1 (19)
Despite seeing the fourth-most snaps among wide receivers this season, Clifford didn’t record his first reception until the second quarter against the Wildcats.
Running backs
Nick Singleton: 35 (101)
Kaytron Allen: 30 (96)
Cam Wallace: 4 (15)
Despite seeing similar snap counts, Singleton received twice as many carries as Allen, which Franklin attributed to game flow.
Tight ends
Khalil Dinkins: 47 (121)
Luke Reynolds: 39 (110)
Andrew Rappleyea: 29 (64)
Joey Schlaffer: 4 (7)
Dinkins returned to the top of the tight end room in total snaps, but he had no targets while Reynolds had five, and he finished with the lowest PFF grade of the four. Rappleyea saw an increase in field time, but only saw one target on Saturday.
Offensive linemen
Nick Dawkins: 66 (181)
Drew Shelton: 66 (181)
Nolan Rucci: 66 (172)
Anthony Donkoh: 47 (150)
Vega Ioane: 47 (147)
TJ Shanahan Jr.: 23 (73)
Cooper Cousins: 23 (66)
Garrett Sexton: 4 (28)
Dom Rulli: 4 (28)
Eagan Boyer: 4 (4)
Drew Shelton, Nick Dawkins and Nolan Rucci played a majority of the game at left tackle, center and right tackle, respectively. Cooper Cousins and TJ Shanahan Jr. came in at left and right guard to replace Vega Ioane and Anthony Donkoh in the second half. Toward the end of the game, Garrett Sexton, Dom Rulli and Eagan Boyer filled in as backups at the tackle and center spots.
Defensive linemen
Dani Dennis-Sutton: 28 (99)
Chaz Coleman: 25 (71)
Yvan Kemajou: 23 (54)
Zane Durant: 22 (90)
Xavier Gilliam: 21 (70)
Owen Wafle: 21 (44)
Alonzo Ford Jr. 19 (61)
Zuriah Fisher: 17 (51)
Cortez Harris: 13 (13)
Randy Adirika: 12 (19)
Jaylen Harvey: 11 (58)
Ty Blanding: 11 (46)
Enai White: 8 (29)
Bobby Mears: 8 (11)
Liam Andrews: 6 (11)
Sam Siafa: 6 (6)
Penn State cycled in a long list of defensive linemen, with freshman defensive end Chaz Coleman continuing to see a hefty workload. Through three games, Dennis-Sutton and Coleman rank as the team’s top two players.
Linebackers
Amare Campbell: 38 (119)
Tony Rojas: 30 (106)
Anthony Speca: 21 (45)
Alex Tatsch: 21 (21)
Dom DeLuca: 16 (78)
Keon Wylie: 11 (45)
Freshman Alex Tatsch saw his first college action after receiving praise from position coach Dan Connor (who compared Tatsch to himself) during the week. Though he graded poorly on run defense, PFF had Tatsch as one of the team’s top tacklers.
Defensive backs
A.J. Harris: 34 (101)
Dejuan Lane: 34 (91)
Audavion Collins: 31 (72)
Daryus Dixson: 29 (80)
Zakee Wheatley: 27 (83)
Zion Tracy: 27 (47)
King Mack: 26 (70)
Vaboue Toure: 20 (51)
Kenny Woseley Jr.: 19 (87)
Jahmir Joseph: 19 (42)
Antoine Belgrave-Shorter: 18 (81)
Elliot Washington II: 12 (65)
Kolin Dinkins: 7 (36)
Tyler Armstead: 2 (12)
For the first time this season, King Mack got the start at safety over Antoine Belgrave-Shorter, though they ended with similar snap counts. Franklin said Belgrave-Shorter had a better training camp, but Mack “worked his way back into it” with his play through two weeks on defense and special teams. PFF has Mack graded at 79.9 this season and Belgrave-Shorter at 57.7.
Freshmen Jahmir Joseph and Daryus Dixson continued to impress, with Joseph getting a late pick-6 against the Wildcats. PFF ranks both among the top 10 Nittany Lions on defense through three weeks, including the No. 1 and No. 6 coverage grades on the team.
