For the seventh consecutive year, Penn State took on the Ohio State Buckeyes and lost. Saturday’s game showed the current duality of the Nittany Lions football program. The defense had a championship-caliber performance, while the offense was unable to take advantage.

 For better or for worse, much of the spotlight after the 20-12 loss was cast on first-year quarterback, and Ohio native, Drew Allar. Allar took his poor play particularly hard, expressing emotion that Penn State fans had yet to see from the 19-year-old signal caller.

 As the Nittany Lions look to move on, James Franklin and LaVar Arrington discussed how the sophomore gunslinger can use this experience to learn and grow on this week’s episode of Quite Franklin. 

Disaster in Columbus

There’s really no other way to put it – the Penn State offense looked inept Saturday against the stout Buckeye defense.

The Nittany Lions only amassed 240 yards on the day, 73 of which came on the final drive of the game. Penn State only had five of 14 drives go for more than 20 yards. But perhaps the most glaring flaw in the game was a pitiful 1-16 conservation rate on third down.

Much was made of Drew Allar’s return to Ohio, where the nation watched his rise from a three-star recruit to the No. 1 quarterback in America. But Allar looked uncomfortable from the start against Ohio State, finishing the day going 18-42 for 191 yards and a touchdown.

Allar was visibly shaken after the game, fighting back tears as he simply told reporters that he felt his performance “sucked.”

A blessing in disguise for a young quarterback?

While Saturday’s outcome wasn’t what anyone wanted, the focus now must be on how Drew Allar, and Penn State football, can respond. On this week’s episode of Quite Franklin, Nittany Lion legend LaVar Arrington explained why Allar might look back at the game as a positive when everything is said and done.

“It was a blessing in disguise to me, because it was the most needed test for the early maturation process of the franchise,” Arrington said. “Our franchise quarterback had a rough day, obviously. But my takeaway was, if a true sophomore quarterback doesn’t get the opportunity to get that game experience under their belt and feel either the high of it or the low of it, it’s hard to grow up. It’s hard to get battle tested.

“I love the way he handled it,” Arrington continued. “I love the way it upset him. I love the way he took responsibility for it…He seemed genuinely upset and felt like he let everyone down…You learn a lot about the character [of Allar]; it’s revealed in those moments.”

In response, James Franklin explained how it’s been an all-out family effort to help Allar bounce back this week. While the Penn State football coach acknowledged that it wasn’t a good day from anyone Saturday, the offense needs to do more to help its young quarterback.

“He’s a special young man,” Franklin said of Allar. “I think Monday morning, he was at the house with my wife having pancakes and burnt bacon.”

“But I think offensively, for me, it came down, after watching the game in detail, to third down,” he continued. “We could not stay on the field on third down. And when that happens, it’s hard to get into a rhythm…Obviously Drew is going to take a lot of that on his shoulders. But the reality is, we got to make plays for the guy as well.”

Allar and the Nittany Lions will have a tremendous opportunity to respond, returning to Beaver Stadium this week to take on the Indiana Hoosiers.

Quite Franklin: 5:56 - 8:36

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