“So Far So Good” Wednesday Injury Update: Penn State QB Drew Allar a Game-Time Decision
Penn State Football opened practice to the media for the final time before the Nittany Lions take the field Saturday against the Ohio State Buckeyes in a top-five showdown that has major implications on both the College Football Playoff and the Big Ten conference championship.
During Wednesday’s practice window, the media in attendance were able to observe two key Penn State players injured against Wisconsin and their progress toward potentially being available for the Nittany Lions Saturday.
Here is an update after Wednesday’s media availability window and where things stand for each of Penn State’s three starters injured against Wisconsin last Saturday.
Drew Allar
All eyes were on QB1 Wednesday night as Penn State hopes to get Drew Allar back against the Nittany Lions most formidable opponent thus far this season. Allar was a full participant in drills Wednesday, participating as both a passer and a runner in multiple drills.
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After practice Wednesday night, during his weekly post-practice press conference, Penn State head coach James Franklin noted that he had nothing new to share regarding Allar’s availability for this weekend’s game against the Buckeyes, noting that all seemed “so far, so good” for Allar to be on track to be a game-time decision Saturday.
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Anthony Donkoh
Penn State right tackle Anthony Donkoh exited the game against Wisconsin with an unspecified injury and did not return.
Prior to the game against the Badgers, Donkoh had been dealing with a shoulder injury that he played through since the UCLA game on October 5.
At practice on Wednesday, we got a small amount of clarity on Donkoh’s injury, at least enough to confirm that it is not the same shoulder injury that Donkoh has been playing through. According to StateCollege.com’s Seth Engle, Donkoh was an active participant in practice, but was dealing with an obvious limp.
Donkoh’s availability to practice, albeit while limited, suggests that he could be a gametime decision this weekend against Ohio State.
Dani Dennis-Sutton
Penn State starting defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton was the third Penn State starter to be injured against Wisconsin last Saturday.
Dennis-Sutton seemingly injured his groin or hamstring during the second quarter against Wisconsin. After warming up after the half, Dennis-Sutton played the first play of the second half, before exiting and not returning. Dennis-Sutton was not seen during the media availability window of practice Wednesday.
On Monday at his weekly press conference, James Franklin noted that Dennis-Sutton has been in the training room every time Franklin went down to the training room since the game Saturday and Dennis-Sutton could be a gametime decision even if limited in practice this week because of his veteran status.
Ohio State
Ohio State head coach Ryan Day also met with the media Wednesday to offer an update on a few key injuries for the Ohio State Buckeyes ahead of the matchup this weekend.
Day noted that offensive tackle Zen Michalski (who started at left tackle for the Buckeyes last Saturday against Nebraska) is trending not to play against the Nittany Lions Saturday. Day also provided a more positive update on the status of safety Lathan Ransom, who he said had a good day of practice and is ready to go for Saturday.
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Both Ohio State and Penn State could be waiting until the final minutes of warmups Saturday to fully understand the availability of a few key players on both sides of Saturday’s matchup. Who can go and who can’t could play a large part in which team ends up on top and controlling their own destiny in the Big Ten title hunt moving forward.
MORE: What We Learned From Simulating Penn State vs. Ohio State 20 Times in EA Sports College Football 25
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