Best Penn State football of 2025 season? How PSU crushed Nebraska
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STATE COLLEGE — Penn State football fans finally got the performance they’ve been waiting for all season in a frosty, three quarters-filled Beaver Stadium.
Running back Kaytron Allen broke the school rushing record.
Their defense flew around and made plays and looked like the one of the nation’s best, once again.
And the fans chanted for their interim head coach, who’s seemingly more beloved by the week.
The Nittany Lions finally dominated a Power 4 opponent with a winning record on exhilarating Nov. 22 Saturday night − salvaging some feel-good vibes during the last home game of the most turbulent, disappointing season in years.
Sure enough, Terry Smith took down Nebraska’s Matt Rhule in the battle of former Nittany Lions-turned-head coaches.
Here are the grades for PSU’s resounding 37-10 victory:
Offense: A
The simple, expected preplanning worked to perfection. The Lions leaned into their strength (running with Kaytron Allen and Nick Singleton) against a suspect defense. Ethan Grunkemeyer supported it with his best decision-making and accurate-passing performance yet (11-of-12, 181 yards).
The Lions were direct and methodical and effective. By the time it was 30-3 early in the third quarter, the Lions had 167 yards rushing and 162 passing.
Soon after, Allen (25 carries, 160 yards, 6.4 average) broke the record.
It doesn’t get much better.
Defense: A-
These guys have been flying around at another level the past three weeks.
This was the best sign early on: Sensational tailback Emmett Johnson hit them for a 52-yard run on the first drive, and the Lions suffocated him the rest of the half (23 yards on 10 other first-half carries), allowing things to get out of hand.
They made a quarterback pay dearly again with repetitive hits, highlighted by rookie Yvan Kemajou’s big sack early.
Linebacker Amare Campbell and trending freshman cornerback Daryus Dixon were terrific again with energy, pursuit and sure tackling. Must-keeps for next season.
Special teams: B-
Trebor Pena delivered the Lions’ second-longest punt return of the season (21 yards).
We’re picking, but Gabe Nwosu’s short kickoff led to a long return and Ryan Barker missed his first extra point of the season.
Coaching: B+
The Lions, despite that six-game losing streak, have been energized the past three weeks, and Terry Smith deserves a ton of credit.
The best performance yet of the ultra-disappointing 2025 season certainly still matters. The Lions featured their most effective, thorough pregame preparation yet: They knew how to dissect the Cornhuskers and were surgical in their implementation.
Overall: A
You could not ask for a better effort and performance under the circumstances.
This is the Penn State team fans envisioned − despite missing their head coach and star quarterback − at the beginning of a supposed national championship kind of season.
At least it finally happened.
Frank Bodani covers Penn State football for the York Daily Record and USA Today Network. Contact him at fbodani@ydr.com and follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @YDRPennState.
This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Kaytron Allen, Penn State football report card for crushing Nebraska
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