The absence of Penn State RB Nicholas Singleton against UCLA was a last-minute deal

After being officially listed as questionable heading into Saturday’s 27-11 win over UCLA, star running back Nicholas Singleton did not appear in the game.

The junior warmed up in what appeared to be a full capacity through Penn State’s pregame routine, and he started the game on the sideline in full uniform. He did not grab his helmet during the game and remained on the sidelines.

Singleton also missed Wednesday’s portion of practice that was available to the media. Coach James Franklin said at the time that there was nothing “at this time” that would jeopardize Singleton’s availability.

Franklin said after Saturday’s win that he thought Singleton would be able to practice in the game at the end of the week, but he learned after warmups that the junior running back would be unavailable. Running backs coach Ja’Juan Seider and head coach Andy Mutnan met Franklin just after warmups to shut down Singleton.

“It was literally a last-minute deal,” Franklin said Saturday. “Obviously it’s not important to have a guy like Nick, but it was a great opportunity for Kaytron (Allen) to get a few more touches, and it was also a great opportunity to get Quinton (Martin) to get involved.”

After the final whistle blew, Singleton moved among his teammates to midfield and shook hands with UCLA. There was nothing remarkable – like extra tape, braces, etc. – about his appearance.

In total, it was a season-low 85 yards on the ground for Penn State without Singleton.

Allen took 21 carries for 78 yards and a touchdown, just 3.7 yards per carry. He also had one reception for 1 yard.

“I know he was hurt because he couldn’t play. I know how much it means to him, how much he loves football,” Allen said. “However, his behavior was good. He still helped me like he was out there.

Freshman Martin was the only other running back with a touch, once for 1 yard. He did impress in the receiving game with three catches for 18 yards. It was his second appearance of the season.

Backup quarterback Beau Pribula (two carries, 6 yards) and tight end Tyler Warren (one carry, 5 yards) also had rushes. Including sack yardage (one for -9 yards), quarterback Drew Allar had -3 yards.

Franklin added that he didn’t think Penn State’s play-calling changed because Singleton was postponed. The Lions threw the ball 24 times and ran it 30 times.

“I think overall we handled it well,” Franklin said.

Penn State could use Singleton fully healthy next week, with a trip to USC coming up for what will be a ranked matchup.

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