Penn State’s NFL footprint showed up fast in Week 1, and the biggest early splash came from the tight ends. Mike Gesicki, Tyler Warren, Brenton Strange and Pat Freiermuth all found the end zone, while former Nittany Lion wideout Juwan Johnson added a score of his own. Elsewhere, Parker Washington delivered a highlight for Jacksonville, Saquon Barkley finally broke loose for his first big run of the season, and Kaytron Allen made his regular season debut.
Gesicki got the Bengals rolling against Tampa Bay with his first touchdown of the season. Joe Burrow hit him on a short pass, and Gesicki carried it the rest of the way for a 2-yard score before bringing out the “griddy.” He finished with 78 yards on five catches in Cincinnati’s 33-27 win.
Warren’s touchdown was all about size and timing. The second-year tight end used his 6-foot-6 frame on a first-and-goal throw from short range, diving through traffic for the score against Baltimore. He didn’t do much else statistically, ending with 13 yards on three receptions.
Strange kept Jacksonville in full control of Cleveland with a 14-yard touchdown in the second quarter. Trevor Lawrence found him in the middle of the end zone to make it 24-0, and Strange wrapped up the day with two catches for 23 yards on three targets.
Johnson celebrated his birthday by getting into the end zone for the Lions. He beat Detroit linebacker Jack Campbell on an over-the-shoulder catch in the back of the end zone for a 9-yard touchdown, then finished with 54 yards on three receptions.
Freiermuth added another Penn State score when Aaron Rogers connected with him for a 6-yard touchdown in the back of the end zone, putting Pittsburgh ahead of Atlanta in the second quarter.
Brisker also made his presence felt in that Steelers-Falcons matchup. He picked off an overthrown Cooper Rush pass intended for Jahan Dotson and returned it 10 yards in the second quarter, setting up Freiermuth’s touchdown on the next drive. Brisker finished with six total tackles, four solo tackles and one pass defended.
Porter, meanwhile, did not play in Week 1 because of a back injury that kept him off the field for most of camp. The Steelers cornerback is also still waiting on a contract extension, and talks have not produced a deal.
Washington’s first-quarter grab was one of the cleaner plays of the day. A day after reports said he and the Jaguars were unlikely to agree to a contract extension, he made a diving catch in the front corner of the end zone on a leading throw from the 30-yard line.
It was the first touchdown by a former Nittany Lion this season and Jacksonville’s first score of the year. Washington finished with 83 yards on five receptions in the Jaguars’ 34-10 win over Cleveland.
Barkley’s opener for Philadelphia was mostly quiet, but he did flash in the second quarter. He ripped off a 42-yard run, bouncing off contact and powering through several tackles before being dragged down inside the 15-yard line.
Outside of that burst, the Eagles’ ground game never really got moving. Barkley ended with 83 rushing yards on 15 carries.
Allen got his first NFL regular season action against the Eagles and logged four carries in the second half. His first touch came late in the third quarter for five yards, and his final three carries came on Washington’s last touchdown drive in the fourth quarter, with gains of 4, 4 and 3 yards. He finished with 16 yards, averaging four yards per carry.
In Other News...
Penn State's First Big Ten Home Stage Just Got Even Bigger
Penn States first Big Ten home test comes with a little extra shine, as the Nittany Lions get set to host Wisconsin on Saturday, Sept. 26, at Beaver Stadium. The conference opener will also double as Homecoming and the programs Helmet Stripe game, giving an already meaningful afternoon a bit more pageantry as Penn State looks to carry a 2-0 start into league play.
The matchup arrives with Penn State sitting No. 14 in the AP Top 25 Poll, adding to the sense that this is more than just an early conference date. It will also be streamed exclusively on Peacock, which means plenty of attention will be centered on a game that could set the tone for how the Nittany Lions are viewed once the Big Ten race fully settles in. [Read more 🡒]
Penn State Sent A Clear Message After That Hit On Rocco Becht
Late hits on quarterbacks have a way of revealing a teams temperament, and Penn State has now shown two very different versions of itself in those moments. Back in the 2021 loss to Illinois, the reaction was muted, with James Franklin saying afterward that he preferred the officials to handle that kind of play. In the recent game against Temple, though, the response around Rocco Becht looked a lot more unified, with the offense and the rest of the group making it clear they were not going to let a teammate get left on an island after he took the shot.
That shift in body language mattered because it came with the usual balancing act every team faces in those situations: stand up for your quarterback without turning it into a penalty parade. Matt Campbell and Becht both pointed to the teams togetherness afterward, and it fit the bigger picture around Penn States sideline, where protecting one another is becoming part of the message as much as any play call. [Read more 🡒]
Penn State Has A Big Ten Opening Fans Cant Ignore
The early Big Ten picture is already starting to take shape, and Penn State followers have reason to keep one eye on the conference landscape even before the league race fully settles in. A new look at the league's first stretch of games puts Big Ten teams in a broader Power Conference context, measuring how the conference has stacked up against the SEC while sorting teams into tiers based on what they've shown so far.
For Penn State, the bigger issue is not just where the Nittany Lions sit right now, but how the rest of the league has looked around them. The analysis points to clear strengths and weaknesses across the Big Ten, and the kinds of early results that can create an opening for one team to separate from the pack if it keeps handling its business. [Read more 🡒]