Penn State defense buries Iowa 31-0 in White Out avalanche [updated]

STATE COLLEGE – Penn State celebrated its annual White Out game Saturday night at Beaver Stadium, which was appropriate.

The seventh-ranked Nittany Lions used a defensive avalanche to bury No. 24 Iowa 31-0 before 110,840 rain-drenched fans.

Penn State (2-0 Big Ten, 4-0) stretched its winning streak to nine by smothering the Hawkeyes (0-1, 3-1) and gaining a measure of revenge for its controversial loss in 2021 in Iowa City.

The Lions held Iowa to four downs and 76 total yards, the second-fewest by a Lions opponent in the Big Ten era. They limited the Hawkeyes to 20 rushing yards and never allowed them to cross their 18-yard line.

“We knew they were a heavy run team, so our mentality all week was to stop the run,” defensive end Chop Robinson said. “The only way to do that on the D-line was to dominate the man in front of us. That’s what we did.”

It was Penn State’s first shutout win over a ranked opponent since a 24-0 whitewash of Texas A&M in the 1999 Alamo Bowl. It was a lopsided victory in a series that has been tight. Five of the previous six games had been decided by six points or less.

“I didn’t know they had less than 100 yards of offense,” safety Jaylen Reed said. “I definitely never had a game like that. It’s just a great feeling, knowing the hard work we put in. I’m just happy for everybody.

“I’m not surprised. It’s what we expect.”

The Lions forced six fumbles and recovered four, two by linebacker Curtis Jacobs that led to a 10-0 halftime lead. On the flip side, they didn’t commit a turnover for the fourth straight game. They’re the only FBS team in the country without one.

“That’s most important to me other than winning,” quarterback Drew Allatr said. “The turnover differential is what wins games. We’ve seen that the past two weeks. That’s huge.

“The offense did a good job of taking care of the ball. We take great pride in ball security every day in practice and just being smart with the football.”

Allar completed 25-of-37 passes for 166 yards and four touchdowns, two to tight end Tyler Warren, one to tight end Khalil Dinkins and the final one to wide receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith.

Allar has yet to throw an interception in 185 career passing attempts, including last season.

“He’s been doing a great job,” Warren said. “You can see his poise back there. He acts like he’s been here for a few years and it’s his first year (as the starter).”

Penn State ran a mind-boggling 97 plays to just 33 for Iowa and had the football for 45:27 compared to 14:33 for the Hawkeyes. The Lions had four scoring drives of at least 10 plays. Their longest gain was a 19-yard run by Nick Singleton in the third quarter.

“We grinded that game out,” Penn State coach James Franklin said. “When you’re playing a team like Iowa, you can’t get bored with grinding it out. They’re going to make you grind it out.

“They’re not going to give up big plays. They played soft in the secondary and kept everything in front of them.”

Iowa quarterback Cade McNamara, who led Michigan to a win at Beaver Stadium in 2021, completed 5-of-14 passes for 42 yards. The Hawkeyes played without tight end Luke Lachey and running backs Kaleb Johnson and Jaziun Patterson, who were all injured.

Iowa didn’t gain a first down from its first possession in the first quarter until its reserves picked up one with about five minutes to go.

“You could feel them losing their edge a little bit,” said Robinson, who had a strip sack in the third quarter that set up a touchdown. “When you’re whipping your man every single play in front of you, it’s hard to bring the same mentality and the same pressure every single time. It was hard for them to stop us.”

Penn State gained the first break of the night when Dani Dennis-Sutton forced tight end Erick All’s fumble, which Jacobs recovered at the Lions’ 18.

From there, Penn State grinded out a 17-play, 53-yard drive to set up Alex Felkins’ 46-yard field goal. The longest gain of the series was Allar’s 13-yard pass to tight end Theo Johnson. The Lions overcame a personal foul penalty and a holding call to score the first points of the night.

After each offense stalled, Riley Thompson’s punt hit an Iowa player and Jacobs recovered at the Hawkeyes’ 39.

Penn State then needed 10 plays to maneuver 39 yards, the final 9 coming on an Allar laser to Dinkins for a touchdown on fourth-and-1.

It was more of the same in the second half much to the delight of the second-largest crowd in Beaver Stadium, including many who remembered Iowa fans booing Penn State players who had been injured in the 2021 meeting at Iowa City.

“We knew what was at stake,” Lambert-Smith said, referring to the loss two years ago. “We didn’t let that change the way we prepared or change our identity during the game. We just had to execute and we did that.”