11/26/2022 football Edit

Penn State Football vs Michigan State: Players to watch

Dylan Callaghan-Croley • Happy Valley Insider

Editor

Penn State Football takes on Michigan State later today in their season finale. The Nittany Lions are looking to win No. 10 of the 2022 season while the Spartans are looking to win No.6, hoping to become bowl eligible.

Last season, on a snowy afternoon in East Lansing, Mel Tucker's Spartans outlasted the Nittany Lions 30-27 behind 138 rushing yards from star running back Kenneth Walker III. Penn State's Jahan Doston tried to help lead the Nittany Lions to victory himself with eight receptions for 137 yards but it wasn't meant to be. Now in 2022, both Walker and Dotson have moved on to the NFL.

So, who will step up in Saturday's action in hopes of leading their team to victory? We take a look below.

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We start off with some two-for-one action with the pair of true freshmen running backs in Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton. Allen and Singleton have been a breath of fresh air for Penn State all season and are closing in on a combined 2,000 yards from scrimmage. Both players have an outside shot of getting there on Saturday against the Spartans. Together, the two have combined for 164.9 yards per game this season. Going up against a weak Michigan State run defense, it wouldn't be shocking if the two combined for 200+ yards in this one.

What a special talent Abdul Carter is and for Penn State, he's given them a chance at another Micah Parsons-type player in the middle of their defense. Carter is already one of the best linebackers in the Big Ten and the country and the sky is the limit for him. As the season has gone, he's only gotten better. This season, he's totaled 48 tackles, 7.5 tackles for a loss, and 4.5 sacks.

Joey Porter Jr is likely a game-time decision which means King will be looked to again as the leader of the secondary. He'll have a tough matchup no matter who he covers in Jayden Reed or Keon Coleman. King has been fantastic all season, allowing just 21 receptions on 41 targets for 279 yards and one touchdown. He also has eight pass breakups and one interception.

Michigan State

Thorne in his third year with the Spartans is still the leader of the offense and has had a solid season. He's completed 63.4% of his passes (218-for-344) for 2,450 yards, and 18 touchdowns. That being said, he's been prone to turnovers with 10 interceptions this season. Despite the turnovers, he's still a high-quality quarterback who can sometimes show deadly accuracy and makes his fair share of big-time throws.

Coleman is Michigan State's leading wide receiver entering the regular season finale with 50 receptions for 707 yards and seven touchdowns. This season, he's had big games against Michigan (5 receptions, 155 yards, 1 TD), Washington (9 receptions, 116 yards, 2 touchdowns, and Indiana (8 receptions, 107 yards, 1 TD), also with quality performances against Western Michigan and Wisconsin. While he is a wide receiver who can have a huge game any given week, he's also been fairly quiet in half of the Spartans' games this season with six games of less than 50 receiving yards.

Reed returned to Michigan State after posting a 1,000-yard season in 2021 but he has not experienced the same success in 2022. After recording 59 receptions for 1,026 yards and 10 touchdowns last season, Reed has totaled 49 receptions for an admirable 600 yards and five touchdowns. He's still put together a quality season but is not nearly the threat he was a year ago. This season, Reed has just one game of 100+ yards, with nine receptions for 117 yards and a touchdown against Wisconsin last month.