Inconsistent Drew Allar Leads Lackluster Penn State Offensive Performance vs. FIU
Good news for the Nittany Lions, Penn State Football easily moved to 2-0 on the season Saturday with a 34-0 win over FIU.
However, despite the final score and the fact that the game was never in doubt from the beginning, the performance by starting quarterback Drew Allar and the Penn State offense left a lot to be desired, even for an early-season non-conference matchup.
Allar was plagued with inconsistency as the Nittany Lions’ offense sputtered to only 10 first-half points and only 20 total points until the final four minutes of Saturday’s contest.
Here is everything about Drew Allar‘s performance Saturday.
Grading Penn State QB Drew Allar vs. FIU
Allar and Penn State’s offense got off to a frustrating start Saturday, taking decent field position on the first drive and turning it into a six-play, 19-yard drive that was stopped with a broken-up Allar pass on fourth and four.
Despite this leading to great field position for FIU, Penn State’s defense was able to stop FIU on fourth down on the 13-yard line, leading to Penn State’s best drive of the afternoon.
On the second drive, Penn State was able to move the ball, marching down the field on a ten-play, 87-yard drive to score Penn State’s line touchdown of the first half.
Penn State leaned heavily on the run during the drive, but Allar did complete two of four passes for 20 yards, including a 9-yard touchdown to Khalil Dinkins.
For the rest of the first half, Allar and the offense sputtered. Penn State managed only 99 yards on the next four drives, scoring only three points. At half, Allar was a pedestrian, 12 of 21 passing for 97 yards and a touchdown.
After the game, Allar commented that he knew his first-half performance was not good enough.
“It’s just going out and kind of just shutting my brain off and going out there and playing,” Allar stated.
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After half, Allar and the offense settled into an early rhythm. On the first two drives of the second half, Penn State converted a field goal and scored the second touchdown of the game to make the score 20-0. Allar was much more efficient on the drives as well, hitting seven of his nine passes for 103 yards and a touchdown, which was his best throw on the day, a 42-yard strike to Devonte Ross in the endzone.
After the first two drives of the second half, however, the Penn State offense sputtered again, punting twice after three-and-outs and losing one yard on the two drives combined. Allar was sacked once and did not complete any of his three pass attempts on the two drives.
Finally, after yet another stop by the Penn State defense on fourth down, Allar and Penn State’s starting offense capped the day with a one-play, 67 yard touchdown drive through a magnificent run by Kaytron Allen (perhaps his best run in his four-year Penn State career).
Allar finished the day hitting 19 of his 33 passes for 200 passing yards and two touchdowns, but leaving plenty to be desired from Penn State’s senior signal caller.
After the game, James Franklin noted that he didn’t think Allar “was in his normal rhythm.”
If Penn State wants to accomplish any of their team goals for the year, the Nittany Lions will need their quarterback to step up his play as Penn State’s schedule gets more difficult.
Allar and the offense have one more tune-up game against Villanova next week before perhaps Allar’s most important test of his career against Oregon in the Whiteout.
If Allar and the offense play anything like they did Saturday, Penn State’s college football playoff hopes and national championship aspirations could quickly be put into question as the season moves along.
Grade: C
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