Penn State has experienced a difficult run of things over the last eight quarters of football. The Nittany Lions suffered their first loss of 2023 at Ohio State, only to come home and narrowly avoid an upset against two-win Indiana.

 

But, there may be a crack of light shining at the end of the tunnel. An offense that has struggled mightily over the last several weeks finally broke things open with its back against the wall Saturday in the form of a 57-yard game-winning touchdown pass from Drew Allar to KeAndre Lambert-Smith.

 

Arguably the most important moment for the Nittany Lions this season, the play now has everyone wondering if the Penn State offense is finally going to open things up in the month of November.

 

Penn State legends break down game-winning touchdown pass

 

Things looked bleak for the Nittany Lions late in the fourth quarter against Indiana Saturday. Penn State was on the verge of an upset at the hands of the two-win Hoosiers. Drew Allar had just thrown the first interception of his career, an ugly mistake deep in Penn State territory that allowed Indiana to tie the game.

 

But then as the Nittany Lions retook possession, something clicked. After back-to-back 10+ yard gains, Allar reared back to launch a dime to KeAndre Lambert-Smith, who scampered down the sideline for a 57-yard touchdown. This was ultimately the deciding score, although followed up by a defensive safety on the ensuing Indiana drive.

 

On this week’s episode of Ki and Juice, Nittany Lion legends O.J. McDuffie and Ki-Jana Carter broke down what the moment could mean for the Penn State offense.

 

“You and I have both been clamoring for the deep ball,” McDuffie said. “…You should do that to loosen defenses up. And also, you got to give your guys a chance. If you see the single-high safety, you got these guys on the outside one-on-one, you got to trust that your receivers are going to win 50/50 balls. And you got to give them a shot.”

 

“We haven’t shown that we can throw it deep,” Carter said of the offense this season. “The so more we can do that and get that on film, and give teams a feel that this might happen, it’s just really going to help our offense. It’s going to open up the offense and spread it out.”

 

Penn State football now stares down the barrel of a difficult three-game stretch. The Nittany Lions travel to 5-3 Maryland Saturday before home dates against 8-0 Michigan and 6-2 Rutgers in the following weeks. If Penn State wants to get through those games with its College Football Playoff hopes still alive, then it’s going to have to open things up like we saw against Indiana.

 

“It was good to see,” Carter said of the deep ball. “It came at the right time; we really needed it. And then hopefully we can see more plays like that because we’re going to need that down the stretch.”

 

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Exclusive player insights, presented by HVU On-Demand

 

If you enjoyed this exclusive content, stay tuned for more exclusive insights throughout the 2023 season. HVU On-Demand will be providing exclusive access to player interviews and other content throughout the fall as part of the brand-new partnership between Happy Valley United, Up on Game, and Basic Blues Nation.

 

This initiative aims to promote NIL opportunities for the over 800 Penn State student-athletes represented by Happy Valley United and provide you with exclusive behind-the-scenes insights from your favorite Nittany Lions.

 

To donate, please visit Happy Valley United’s website. We Are!