Penn State 33-30 USC (Oct. 12, 2024) Game Recap

LOS ANGELES – Penn State traveled about 2,500 miles across the continent on its first road trip in the new Big Ten. The Nittany Lions then spent most of Saturday playing from behind against Southern California.

Thanks to several throws from Drew Allar, some key defensive stops and one of the best games by a tight end in FBS history, the Nittany Lions can begin the long journey home with their undefeated record and their national championship dreams.

Tyler Warren caught 17 passes, tying the FBS single-game record for tight ends, Ryan Barker hit a 36-yard field goal in overtime and No. 4 Penn State rallied from a 14-point deficit in the second half to a 33-30 win over USC.

Allar rushed for a career-high 391 yards and two touchdowns despite three interceptions for Penn State (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten), which failed to take the lead in the final 49 minutes of regulation. The Nittany Lions came back and tied the game three times in the final 20 minutes, the last time on Nicholas Singleton's 14-yard TD reception with 2:53 left.

USC was then pushed back three yards on the first three plays of overtime before Michael Lantz missed a 45-yard field goal attempt. Penn State advanced to the 19, and Barker's teammates stormed the field of the Colosseum to celebrate after burying the winner.

“I think the word 'resilient' was probably the best word to define our team today,” Penn State coach James Franklin said. “And it's good to be able to go in and say, 'Hey guys, we're a team that plays in the second half.' But I'd rather not say that anymore. I would prefer to be a four-quarter team, a fast-start team, all things considered.”

Quentin Joyner scored two early touchdowns for the Trojans (3-3, 1-3), who have lost three of four. USC hasn't beaten a top-five team since the Trojans took on No. 5 Penn State in a 52-49 Rose Bowl thriller in January 2017.

“It's a slap in the face, no doubt,” said Lincoln Riley, who has lost eight of his last 13 games.

Penn State relied heavily on Warren to step up 224 yards and a touchdown although his only catch after the third quarter was a 3-yarder in overtime. He tied the record for catches by a tight end, set by Emilio Vallez of New Mexico in 1967 and tied by Jon Harvey for Northwestern in 1982.

“As the game goes on, you don’t notice it,” Warren said, shaking off his records. “I thought we just did a good job all around.”

Warren made his TD catch in the third quarter the end of a trick game whereupon Warren snapped the ball to backup QB Beau Pribula, who switched to Allar.

Although USC ultimately defeated Warren on the Nittany Lions' final drives, the senior set a record for most receptions by an opponent in USC's 137-year football history.

“It just shows what kind of player he is,” Allar said. “Ty Warren had an amazing game today and I’m just really happy for him. I think he showed in the first half of the season that he’s the best tight end in the country.”

The Nittany Lions started their longest regular-season road trip to the West since 1991 slowly but finished it impressively. After taking a 3-0 lead on its first drive, Penn State trailed 20-6 at halftime before the offense got going.

USC's Kyron Hudson then caught a touchdown pass from Miller Moss with 5:56 left, but Allar converted two fourth downs with desperation passes to Julian Fleming before Singleton was left completely alone for his tying catch.

USC pushed toward midfield in the final seconds, but Riley strangely didn't use timeouts to extend the Trojans' push before Jaylen Reed picked off Moss with five seconds left. Riley said he didn't want to give Penn State time for one last drive.

“The reality is we played the toughest schedule in the country through the first six games, (and) we had a chance to win all six games,” Riley said. “That's hard to do… so we're doing a lot of good, and I understand that that good isn't going to be seen from the outside right now because they're going to be focused on the record and the fact that that's what we have.” Lost three games in the last game.”

Moss passed for 220 yards and two scores, while Joyner scored a 75-yard touchdown in the first quarter and made his first touchdown catch in the second quarter. Woody Marks rushed for 111 yards.

“They all hurt, (but) this one was particularly distressing just because of the way it happened,” Moss said.

Penn State failed to score a touchdown in the first half, but got rolling with Allar's TD throw to Warren. The Nittany Lions made a 90-yard march to tie the game moments later, but Kaytron Allen scored the equalizer.

The takeaway food

Penn State: The Nittany Lions celebrated exuberantly after a win that was exciting but more difficult than necessary. Their slow start and overall rough defensive performance doesn't bode well for Ohio State or any opponent with more consistency than mercurial USC.

USC: The Trojans responded impressively to last week's embarrassing loss, but are still falling short. Riley's third team at USC was eliminated from the Big Ten and CFP races midway through the season.

Next

Penn State: Bye week.

USC: At Maryland on October 19th.

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AP College Football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football