Penn State overcomes loss of Drew Allar to subdue Rutgers [updated]

STATE COLLEGE — Penn State linebacker Kobe King knew from the time Beau Pribula began practice last year how effective he was going to be at quarterback.

“I didn’t know he was that fast until he got running on us,” King said. “We saw that he was going to be a problem with his feet. He showed that today. I’m proud of him for that.”

Pribula came off the bench for the injured Drew Allar and led three scoring drives as the Nittany Lions turned back Rutgers 27-6 Saturday on Senior Day at Beaver Stadium.

Before an announced crowd of 105,114, Pribula carried eight times for 71 yards and one touchdown after he replaced Allar early in the third quarter.

“I was super proud of the guys really having my back,” he said. “Nobody flinched in the huddle. That really made my job easier. The offensive line played really well. And the defense played well.

“I’m really glad we’re able to send these seniors out with a win in their last game at Beaver Stadium.”

Thanks to the former Central York star, No. 12 Penn State (6-2 Big Ten, 9-2) rebounded from its loss to unbeaten Michigan and moved closer to its fifth New Year’s Six bowl game and 10-win season in eight years.

The Lions handed the Scarlet Knights (3-5, 6-5) their 17th straight loss in the series and their third consecutive loss overall. Rutgers fell to 0-31 against ranked Big Ten opponents and failed to score its first Big Ten touchdown at Beaver Stadium in five games.

Allar, the Lions’ starting quarterback, suffered what appeared to be an injury to his right shoulder or arm on a draw play early in the third quarter. Defensive back Flip Dixon hit him hard after an 8-yard gain. Allar got up slowly and then threw the ball into the bench before making his way to the sideline.

He was treated in the Penn State medical tent for several minutes before he emerged trying to loosen his right arm and then wearing a winter cap.

“I’m not going to get into medical stuff,” Lions coach James Franklin said. “That wouldn’t be appropriate for Drew, wouldn’t be appropriate for his family. But I don’t see this as being significant. But we will see.”

Penn State was leading 10-6 when Pribula entered. On his first play, he ran for 39 yards on a draw. The Lions couldn’t convert on fourth-and-1 from the Rutgers 4, but he had sent a message to the Scarlet Knights (3-5, 6-5).

“It was super important to have an explosive play like that on my first play just to set the tone,” Pribula said. “I had the option to throw as well. I decided to run. I saw a crease and just ran up the right sideline and tried to get as much as I could get.”

That swung field position in the favor of Penn State, which scored on Alex Felkins’ 48-yard field goal on its next series.

Defensive end Chop Robinson changed everything late in the third quarter when he burst off the edge and popped quarterback Gavin Wimsatt, jarring the ball loose and recovering it at the Rutgers 42.

“It’s a good feeling,” said Robinson, who missed two games with an undisclosed injury. “I was timing the clock the whole time, and I saw he wasn’t snapping the ball until it got under five seconds. I was keying that the whole game.

“Once I took off and saw I was halfway past him, I just swiped at his hands and sacked him.”

Five plays later, Kaytron Allen ran for his second short touchdown to make it 20-6 less than a minute into the fourth quarter.

KJ Winston stopped Rutgers’ next drive with his first career interception at the Penn State 27. Nick Singleton, who was bottled up in the first half, then ripped off runs of 20, 9 and 12 yards, giving the Lions a first down at the Rutgers 3.

Singleton rushed for 2 yards before Pribula fumbled the ball, picked it up and scored to seal it.

“Coach Franklin has done a really good job of getting me in games and situations all season long,” Pribula said. “That made my job a lot easier today. I was a lot more comfortable.”

In the first half, Penn State fell behind 3-0 as Rutgers used 14 plays and more than nine minutes to drive 61 yards for Jai Patel’s 34-yard field goal.

The Lions answered with a 15-play, 75-yard drive of their own, which chewed up more than eight minutes. Allar picked up 20 yards on two quarterback draws and found Liam Clifford for a 15-yard gain before Allen scored from the 2 for a 7-3 lead early in the second quarter.

Penn State forced a turnover  moments later when Dani Dennis-Sutton recovered Wimsatt’s fumble at the Rutgers 32. Allar’s 23-yard throw to Tyler Warren and Singleton’s 6-yard burst gave the Lions second-and-goal from the 3.

The Lions, though, couldn’t cross the goal line and settled for Felkins’ 21-yard field goal and a 10-3 lead.

Late in the half, Rutgers started at its 41 after a 56-yard punt by Riley Thompson. Wimsatt completed three passes for 52 yards to give the Knights a first down at the 7. But a holding penalty and two incompletions led to Patel’s second field goal, a 28-yarder as time ran out.

That was as close as Rutgers came to scoring the rest of the afternoon.

King finished with a career-high 10 tackles as Penn State held the Knights to 229 total yards, just 76 in the second half.

“We were flying around, but there was a point where we were kind of stale,” he said. “We had to get guys on the same page and re-invent our energy and our effectiveness. We just turned it up a notch.”