Drew Allar, No. 7 Penn State ready for first road test in 2023

In just two games to begin the 2023 campaign, former five-star quarterback Drew Allar has lit the college football landscape on fire.

In 2023, Allar completed 43-55 passes for 529 yards and four touchdowns while notching a rushing touchdown. His play has provided fans with the optimism that No. 7 Penn State can reach the College Football Playoff for the first time in program history.

While Allar torched the West Virginia and Delaware defenses, this Saturday against Illinois could be his toughest test yet. Saturday’s contest marks the first collegiate road start for Allar, but he’s not viewing it any differently.

“They’re a really well-coached defense,” Allar said on Tuesday. “They’ve forced a lot of turnovers in the past, they really get after the quarterback and they do a good job of slowing down the run game, so it’s going to be a huge challenge for us this week.”

The game will also mark the first matchup between the two programs since Illinois upset the Nittany Lions in a record-setting nine overtimes in 2021. The Fighting Illini enter the contest with a 1-1 record, and they are known for making it tough for opposing offenses.

“I think they present a lot of different things. They make everything look the same, and they do a really good job of disguising,” Allar said. “They have a lot of big guys up front, a lot of size up front, so it’s definitely going to be a challenge this week.”

While Illinois didn’t look overly impressive in its victory over Toledo and its loss to Kansas last week, it will have a raucous crowd with its “Orange Out” crowd.

Despite the tough road environment James Franklin believes his quarterback is ready for the battle.

“We expect it to be a challenging road environment, but we didn’t wait until this week to prepare for that,” Franklin said. “Whether it’s crowd noise or whatever it may be, we’ve done that all training camp.”

In his true freshman season, Allar played in 10 contests, backing up the veteran Sean Clifford. Allar appeared in every road game on the blue and white’s schedule a year ago, which will help him now as the starter.

“We played on the road a ton last year,” Allar said. “Even if I didn’t get to get into the game, I was still able to experience what it’s like to be on the road.”

Allar has been leading one of the most potent offenses in college football, as the Nittany Lions are averaging 50.5 points in their first two games.

Even though it’s only been just two games, Allar noted the offense has made several adjustments from game one to game two.

“I felt like I did a better job of recognizing the defenses because the last few defenses we saw presented a lot of different fronts and blitz packages that were really challenging,” Allar said. “I think last week we did a better job of picking them up.”

Many other Nittany Lions are excited about the opportunity to hit the road for the first time this season and play in difficult environments.

Saturday’s matchup with the Fighting Illini marks the eighth consecutive campaign where Penn State has opened Big Ten play away from Beaver Stadium. During the eight years, the Nittany Lions have a 5-2 record, and they are looking to build upon it this weekend.

“You can’t really coach that, but I feel like we have a culture as a team that we’re just able to do that at a high level,” Curtis Jacobs said.

While many of Penn State’s stars didn’t play in the last contest back in 2021, Jacobs did, and he noted that the team was severely underprepared.

The senior linebacker mentioned Illinois threw a lot of different looks at the Nittany Lions, but fast forward to the current day, and the blue and white is prepared for anything that could be thrown at it.

According to Jacobs, Penn State has gotten much grittier and tougher, which is key to succeeding on the road.

“I feel like the mentality we have as road warriors has changed,” Jacobs said. “I feel like we’re in a good place as a team.”

Alex Rocco is a senior majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email alex.rocco1702@gmail.com.