If Penn State quarterback Drew Allar is able to play in Saturday’s matchup with Ohio State, the Buckeyes — along with fans and media — likely won’t know until gametime. The Big Ten clash will feature the No. 3 and No. 4 teams in the AP Top 25.
Allar suffered a knee injury on the Nittany Lions’ final possession of the first half during Week 9’s 28–13 win versus Wisconsin, apparently getting hurt while being sacked by the Badgers’ Jake Chaney. The junior QB warmed up wearing a brace on his left knee after halftime, but determined he couldn’t play and backup Beau Pribula replaced him.
Coach James Franklin updated reporters on Allar’s status at his Monday news conference, saying that Allar and Pribula will share snaps in practice on Tuesday and Wednesday. He’ll meet again with the media after Wednesday’s session. But the timeline on a decision will apparently go all the way up to Saturday’s 12 p.m. ET kickoff in State College.
Prior to leaving the Wisconsin game, Allar threw for 148 yards and a TD on 14-of-18 passing. Pribula completed 11-of-13 passes for 98 yards and a touchdown, leading two scoring drives in the fourth quarter to rally Penn State from a 10–7 halftime deficit.
Coming out of high school, Pribula was a three-star recruit in the 2022 class. He was ranked as the No. 15 player in Pennsylvania and No. 6 quarterback nationally by Rivals.
Allar’s performance has improved significantly under new offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki. In seven games this season, Allar has thrown for 1,640 yards with 12 touchdowns and four interceptions while completing 71.3% of his passes.
Penn State (7–0) has lost its last seven games against Ohio State (6–1) and 11 of their past 12 meetings. Kickoff is at 12 p.m. ET.