Three takeaways from Nebraska football's blowout loss to Penn State

 Nebraska never found any room to breathe in Happey Valley on Saturday night.

The Huskers fell 37-10 and struggled to mount any advantages as Penn State controlled the match from the first drive. 

Matt Rhule’s team falls to 7-4 heading into its rivalry matchup against Iowa on Black Friday, as it tries to find an encouraging win heading into bowl season.

Three takeaways from the blowout loss:

Nebraska can’t contain the run

Penn State’s running back pair of Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton was the biggest looming threat heading into the game. The duo made it known why by ravaging Nebraska’s spotty rushing defense.

Singleton and Allen combined for over 200 yards and four touchdowns on the ground. Allen quickly put his stamp on the game, totaling 58 yards on the Nittany Lions’ first drive. Penn State’s all-time leading rusher gashed Nebraska all night, averaging over six yards per carry. Singleton, the Nittany Lions’ all-time leader in rushing touchdowns, added 51 receiving yards, leading his team. 

The Huskers have struggled to stop the run all year. Penn State made sure to exploit that weakness from the first drive. Nebraska’s cushy run defense allowed the Nittany Lions to wear down the Blackshirts with consistent medium-yard gains on the ground. 

Penn State’s rushing threat also allowed the air attack to open up for Ethan Grunkemeyer. The freshman has been inconsistent at best, filling in for Drew Allar. The Huskers allowed him to throw for 181 yards and a touchdown while completing over 90% of his passes. Most of Grunkemeyer’s targets had a lot of space between them and the nearest defender. 

The answer is simple. Nebraska needs to add more athleticism and size in its front-seven. The Huskers have continually been pushed around and outmaneuvered in the rushing game, allowing for opposing teams to consistently move down the field. If Matt Rhule ever wants to contend in the conference, his teams have to be able to limit top-end rushing attacks or at least mediate them in some meaningful way. 

Lateef still looks the part

TJ Lateef may not have set the world on fire, but he still showed that he is ahead of schedule. In his second start, and first road start with an actual hostile environment, the freshman went 21-of-37 for 187 yards, while adding a rushing touchdown. 

The numbers don’t jump off the stat sheet. However, Lateef did a solid job operating against one of the Big Ten’s most athletic defenses. The signal-caller looked poised under pressure and extended plays well with his legs. 

Although Lateef struggled to locate some of his passes early, he threw some well-placed dimes in the later quarters. He also didn’t turn over the ball once and hasn’t yet this season. Although the offense failed to drive consistently, Lateef put up a solid performance.

The offense can’t only run through EJ

Emmett Johnson had another stellar game. The running back ran for 103 yards and caught a career-high eight receptions. There’s no surprises there.

However, the junior’s production began to slow down against Penn State. 64 of his rushing yards came on the first drive of the game. The heavy workload has begun to catch up.

After having multiple games of 30+ touches and accounting for an FBS-high 37.1% of his team’s yardage, Johnson still can’t be expected to carry the offense. He’s still human.

The Heisman candidate has been one of the most dynamic backs in the country, but he can’t be expected to march the offense down by himself every drive. To keep the offense from becoming too one-dimensional and to keep Johnson on the field, Dana Holgorsen might have to call his number more strategically.