Saturday's matchup between the No. 4 Penn State Nittany Lions and the Minnesota Golden Gophers is expected to be a quality and exciting late November Big Ten showdown. The Nittany Lions are a -11.5-point favorite over the Golden Gophers as of Friday morning.
One of the more intriguing storylines for Saturday's matchup is the quarterback matchup between Penn State junior Drew Allar and Minnesota graduate senior Max Brosmer.
The two quarterbacks had two very different journeys to where they are on Saturday but both have NFL hopes once they finish their collegiate careers. Both quarterbacks are also putting together strong 2024 seasons that have helped elevate their draft stocks.
Drew Allar was a high four-star prospect, a top-100 prospect nationally. Since arriving in Happy Valley as part of the 2022 recruiting class, the Ohio native was looked at by the fanbase as the potential savior of the program.
As a true freshman, Allar backed up long-time starting quarterback Sean Clifford but appeared in 10 games. He flashed his potential, completing 35-of-60 passing attempts for 344 yards and four touchdowns.
In 2023, he took over as the program's starting quarterback. The final numbers for Allar were strong, a 59.9% completion percentage for 2,631 yards and 25 touchdowns to just two interceptions in 13 games played. That being said, while it was by no doubt a strong season, the former four-star prospect left analysts and fans wanting more. There were endless questions about his accuracy, his ability to throw down the field, and even his ability to be a leader.
This fall, Allar has answered a large majority of the questions surrounding his game. His completion percentage has jumped up 12% and he's on pace to surpass his yardage total from last season while posting a similar number of passing touchdowns. Through 10 games, Allar has completed 166-of-231 passing attempts for 2,253 yards and 16 touchdowns with five interceptions.
Notably, three of those interceptions came in one game against USC. Outside of that game, Allar has just two interceptions in 188 passing attempts.
The question of whether he can throw the ball downfield successfully has been answered as well. Despite suboptimal wide receiver play for a large portion of the season, Allar has completed 13-of-24 passing attempts for 475 yards and five touchdowns this season on passing attempts of 20+ yards according to Pro Football Focus. His 54.2% completion percentage on throws of 20+ yards is tied for fourth in the country this season.
The usually quiet-mannered Allar has also seen his confidence and demeanor on the field make major strides. Throughout the 2024 season, Allar has been seen having a command of the huddle and the sidelines while also being seen jawing with opposing defenders.
While many believed Allar could be a three-and-done quarterback, the toolsy, 6-foot-5 signal caller will be faced with a tough decision as the offseason draws closer. Will he return to Penn State for one final run? Or will he enter the NFL Draft and hope that a strong combine and pro day can put him into contention for the first round?
On the opposite sideline, Saturday will be Max Brosmer. A majority of college football fans at this time last season didn't know who Brosmer was.
The Roswell, Georgia native was a two-star prospect in the 2019 recruiting cycle and had just five offers coming out of high school; Columbia, Dartmouth, New Hampshire, Northern Colorado, and Yale.
After a prolific career at New Hampshire that saw him be named a Walter Payton Award Finalist in 2023, Brosmer entered the transfer portal last offseason. Minnesota was quickly a program that became a factor in his recruitment and in quick work, Brosmer was headed to the Twin Cities for his final year of college football.
The Gophers by bringing Brosmer were hoping to upgrade their quarterback play from the 2022 season as now Rutgers starting quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis struggled. In his lone year as the program's starting quarterback, Kaliakmanis recorded a 53.1% completion percentage with 14 touchdowns to nine interceptions.
It's safe to say through 10 games that Brosmer has met and surpassed expectations.
This season, Brosmer has completed 67.1% of his passes for 2,251 yards and 14 touchdowns while throwing just four interceptions. His 137.0 quarterback rating ranks seventh in the Big Ten and his play was an integral part of the Gophers' recent four-game winning streak.
After starting the season with six touchdowns to four interceptions in Minnesota's first five games, Brosmer has taken a notable stride over the Gophers' last five games, especially in the turnover department.
The five-game stretch was much needed for Brosmer who unlike Allar doesn't have all the physical tools that make him a potential dream for an NFL general manager. Brosmer if he gets an opportunity at the NFL level will have a much different, and much more difficult path.
If Brosmer makes the NFL, it will likely be as a late-day three-draft pick or an undrafted free agent. A roster spot will be far from a guarantee, unlike Allar who whether he enters the draft following the 2024 or 2025 season at the very least will be a day-two draft pick, almost guaranteed to get his fair share of opportunities to make a strong impression on whichever franchise calls his name.
That being said, Brosmer's ability to process the game quickly and his strong decision-making skills are surely two traits that will help his case this offseason. The Georgia native has already accepted an invite to the Hula Bowl as he begins to plan the next steps of his journey while also focusing on finishing out Minnesota's 2024 season strong.
For both quarterbacks, Saturday's game offers an opportunity to make statements.
For Allar, it will be another win under his belt, improving his career record as a starter to 20-4 and continuing to position Penn State in a great spot to host a College Football Playoff game this fall.
While many may not consider Saturday's game a "big game" for the Nittany Lions, at this point in the season, when every game counts all that much more, every game is big. While the Nittany Lions don't necessarily need Allar to have a big day to win, they surely could lose Saturday's game if he were to struggle.
For Brosmer, it offers the opportunity for a signature win as the Gophers quarterback. One could point to the Gophers' win over USC earlier this season as that moment but Saturday's game offers the opportunity of upsetting a top-five ranked team nationally, late in the season.
It's a position that the Minnesota Golden Gophers program has been in twice before against the Nittany Lions.
In 1999, The Gophers stunned the No. 2 ranked Nittany Lions 24-23 at Beaver Stadium, derailing a perfect season and sending Penn State into a three-game losing streak.
Two decades later in 2019, Penn State was once again perfect in the record category and ranked fifth nationally. The Gophers' undefeated themselves and ranked No. 13 would upset the Nittany Lions 31-26 to improve their record to 9-0 en route to an 11-2 season. The win remains arguably the biggest in the program's recent history.
While Brosmer won't leave a huge impact in the stat ledger as a Golden Gopher, leading Minnesota to an upset on Saturday would let him leave a lasting impact on his program and one that could potentially help jumpstart the Gophers heading into the offseason. Not to mention a strong performance for Brosmer against an elite Penn State defense could do wonders for his draft stock.
Ultimately, only time will tell how Allar or Brosmer perform on Saturday and which side comes out on top but the wait won't be too much longer. The Nittany Lions and Gophers are scheduled to kickoff at 3:30 p.m. ET / 2:30 p.m. CT on Saturday with the game televised nationally on CBS.
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