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Dec. 26—The last time Penn State played a Southeastern Conference opponent and the last time the Nittany Lions played in a bowl game, Nick Singleton put on dazzling performances.
He shredded Auburn for 124 yards and two touchdowns in a 41-12 rout. He electrified a sellout crowd at the Rose Bowl with an 87-yard TD burst, 120 yards overall and two scores in a 35-21 win over Utah.
Those two games, perhaps more than any others in his sensational freshman season, raised the expectations for Singleton this year.
Those epic moments, however, didn’t come in Penn State’s regular season. As a result, many Lions fans have asked, “What’s wrong with Nick Singleton?”
Perhaps nothing.
“The long runs didn’t show and the stats didn’t show,” Singleton said, “but I feel like I did big catching the ball out of the backfield, blocking, being more patient and letting holes develop.”
The former Gov. Mifflin star has rushed for 702 yards and eight touchdowns and has caught 22 passes for 222 yards and one score for No. 10 Penn State (10-2), which is preparing to face No. 11 Ole Miss (10-2) in the Peach Bowl Saturday at noon (TV-ESPN) in Atlanta.
Including his 302 yards on kickoff returns, he ranks fourth in the Big Ten with 1,266 all-purpose yards. He and backfield mate Kaytron Allen are the two best offensive weapons the Lions have.
“Our job as coaches is to keep them as the focal points of our offense going forward,” said running backs coach Ja’Juan Seider. “To me, it’s a luxury to have two kids who are super talented. I don’t take for granted how talented these kids are and being able to coach them.
“I may never have two this good at the same time ever again. It’s not just the talent. It’s how they’ve grown and how unselfish they are.”
Seider and tight ends coach Ty Howle have simplified the offense since they took over as co-coordinators after…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/penn-states-nick-singleton-looks-045000050.html
Author : Reading Eagle, Pa.
Publish date : 2023-12-27 04:50:00
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