Penn State-Kent State: Drew Allar, Tyler Warren star in Nittany Lions’ blowout win

STATE COLLEGE — Penn State was supposed to blow out Kent State. The Nittany Lions were 49-point favorites, the biggest betting line for Penn State since at least 1995. And even though they got off to a slower start than expected, Drew Allar and the Nittany Lions took care of business.

Penn State overwhelmed Kent State in a 56-0 win on Saturday afternoon at Beaver Stadium. The Nittany Lions racked up a program-record 718 yards. The previous record was 711 yards against Susquehanna in 1926.

The No. 10-ranked Nittany Lions are 3-0 ahead of a ranked matchup with Illinois next Saturday night in Happy Valley. But before we move on to the Illini, let's take a look at Allar and the rest of the standouts from Penn State's dominant win over Kent State.

Offensive game ball: Drew Allar

You have to consider the competition. Kent State owns the worst defense in the FBS. Through three weeks, the Golden Flashes allowed the most yards (570.5) and points (49.7) per game in the country. It would have been concerning if Allar didn't dice them up.

But it's hard to look at both the numbers and the throws and not give him some credit. Allar's final statline after playing the first half and the first drive of the third quarter was impressive. The second-year starter completed 17 of 21 passes for 309 yards and three touchdowns. He also added 26 yards and a score on the ground. Allar was once again confident in and out of the pocket, keeping his eyes downfield and throwing darts.

Through three games, Allar has completed 70.7% of his passes with 729 yards, eight touchdowns and one interception. Level of difficulty aside, pretty good.

Unsung hero: Tyler Warren

Warren proved again why he's the top option in the passing game and one of the best tight ends in college football. Warren, two weeks removed from setting a single-game receiving yards record for a Penn State tight end, hauled in five catches for 50 yards in the first half. He scored a touchdown, bounced off tackles and turned a would-be TFL into a five-yard gain, and snared a ridiculous one-handed catch.

Warren also showed off his versatility. The former high school quarterback was featured twice in the Wildcat. Warren ran for a 16-yard gain. Then, he threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Nicholas Singleton. Warren is a lefty for those who didn't know. And now defensive coordinators will know they have to gameplan for a Warren package down the road.

Defensive game ball: Abdul Carter

Statistically speaking, Carter was off to a slow start switching from linebacker to defensive end. Carter, a projected first-round pick in the 2025 NFL draft, did not have a sack and logged only one TFL through Penn State's first two games. But Carter, after drawing attention from West Virginia and Bowling Green and freeing up others to make plays, finally did his thing.

As expected, Carter was too much for Kent State to handle. The junior, using his combination of size, speed and power, secured his first sack of the season and was in on another TFL.

It wasn't a surprise at all to see Carter make Kent State's life miserable in the first half. Penn State fans will want to see him do what he did against the Golden Flashes as early as next week when the Nittany Lions host Illinois. But there were always going to be growing pains changing positions. Seeing Carter produce is a positive sign, regardless of the opponent.

Special teams game ball: Sander Sahaydak

There wasn't much going on special teams-wise for the Nittany Lions. But Sahaydak did his job, nailing all of his extra point attempts — and there were a lot.

Sahaydak, who lost the starting gig last year to transfer Alex Felkins, has held off a couple of contenders so far this season. He'll be under greater pressure at some point later this year, and Penn State will need him to step up. But so far, so good for the lefty.

Turning point: Allar going deep

In reality, this one was over before it started. It started slow for Penn State. But no one expected it to be a game at any point. And it certainly wasn't when Allar aired it out one last time.

Allar's final throw of the game was a 59-yard touchdown strike to Omari Evans. Less than two minutes into the third quarter, the Nittany Lions had a 35-0 lead. James Franklin could safely start pulling Allar and his starters. The "buy game" win was secured.