WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Penn State emerged from a wild 2022 season-opener against Purdue at Ross-Ade Stadium here Thursday night at 1-0 overall and 1-0 in the Big Ten. So by the most important measures of them all, it was a successful evening for James Franklin and his Nittany Lions.

But that didn’t mean it was all good news for PSU after the 35-31 victory. The Lions seemed to be in control when leading 21-10 at the half, only to offer a dud of a third-quarter in which the Boilermakers rallied to lead 24-21.

Then Penn State bounced back to go up 28-24, and appeared to be on the verge of extending the lead when calamity struck as quarterback Sean Clifford threw a pick six. But the Lion defense had multiple strong stands in the final quarter, and Clifford worked some late-game magic leading to the victory.

Here is my report card from the night. Your feedback — and your grades — are welcome.

Yes, a win is a win. And yes, Purdue can be tough here — especially at night. But between dropped passes, dropped would-be interceptions, the ugly pick six and some rough play by starting right offensive tackle Caedan Wallace, the sense here is that the Nittany Lions were as dangerous to themselves as the Boilermakers were to them at several key moments. A lot to work on before the Ohio game.

Penn State had at least four drops. The offensive line looked a bit improved from 2021, but there is still a serious issue at right tackle and the running game in general remains stuck in the mud. That said, Clifford led touchdown drives to cap the first half and the second half. You can see the promise for this unit, especially if Clifford stays healthy. But there were just too many issues to go any higher than this, even in a game where PSU posted 35 points. 

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I loved how deep Penn State went on defense in the first half. I thought new coordinator Manny Diaz was playing with fire in the fourth quarter, when he STILL relied heavily on his reserves, but it worked for him. Purdue punted on its four straight drives before it ran out of time on its final, futile drive. PSU came THIS close to allowing a pivotal second-down conversion on a broken play on Purdue’s next to last drive. But the completion was waved off when replays showed the pass for tight end Payne Durham hit the ground. The Lions forced a punt that led to the game-winning touchdown drive.

New punter Barney Amor had a 38-yard clunker early in the game. But from there he was terrific. He ended up averaging 46.9 yards with three punts downed inside the 20 — and that was with Daequan Hardy knocking a ball into the end zone that should have been downed inside the 1 . Placements and kickoffs were fine, though we did not get to see any field-goal attempts. The next step is getting more out of the return game.

The Penn State staff could have blinked in this one, but never did. It stuck to its plan of using defenders in waves and it paid off. And as riled up as some folks were that freshmen running backs Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen did not play even more, it must be noted that veteran Keyvone Lee caught the game-winning touchdown pass and veteran Devyn Ford had a clutch 12-yard reception for a first down on an earlier scoring drive.

Even when things went wrong, there was no sense of panic with Penn State. Rookie QB Drew Allar had to take a series when Clifford suffered with cramps, and did well. His best pass was a brutal drop by tight end Tyler Warren. When Clifford threw the pick six, nobody on the sideline lost their cool. And even when the defense allowed big plays, it regrouped.

Aidan O'Connell is a really good quarterback. He made Penn State pay dearly on several blitzes. And he got rid of the ball quickly, mitigating the PSU pass rush until the very end. I guess the Boilermakers are what they are, though, and that’s a team that struggles to run the ball. It killed them when they still leaned heavily on the pass late, basically extending the game for the Lions when they were trailing. I just don’t think that sort of offense is ever going to win consistently on the Big Ten. Purdue also committed nine penalties for 93 yards.

Boilermakers fans may be to differ, but I thought the crew did well overall. Even on the targeting ejection of Penn State freshman linebacker Abdul Carter, they got it right (in my opinion) by the letter of the law. Some good use of replay, and it was done quickly, too.

It was a good group — for Purdue. I was kind of surprised the entire stadium was not full, given the Black Out nature of the game and the fact that it was on national TV. Can’t really say the crowd was much of a factor in this one. 

It was great weather — for beach volleyball. But temperatures in the 80s and humidity nearly 100% just do not work for college football. And yes, you can remind me of this statement when I’m complaining about freezing temperatures in November.

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