Penn State Notebook: Devonte Ross makes his mark with spectacular TD catch

STATE COLLEGE – Devonte Ross caught 11 touchdown passes last season at Troy.

It took the wide receiver a week longer than he wanted to reach the end zone for the first time at Penn State.

Ross made a spectacular one-handed catch for a 42-yard score in the third quarter, which helped the second-ranked Nittany Lions pull away from FIU for a 34-0 victory Saturday at Beaver Stadium.

“It was a special catch,” Ross said. “My first TD here was a special moment. It definitely ranks up there.”

His catch came with Panthers defensive back Ashton Levells draped over him and with Penn State’s offense struggling to find the end zone. He finished with three receptions for 61 yards and returned two punts for 6 yards.

“To see him have the explosiveness he had today was cool to see,” quarterback Drew Allar said. “That’s what we’ve seen from him since he got here.”

Ross, however, missed time during preseason camp with an unspecified injury. Penn State coach James Franklin didn’t think he’d be ready until the fourth game, the Big Ten opener Sept. 27 against Oregon.

“I just took rehab seriously every day,” he said. “I went in there, talking to the doctors and to the people in our building about what was the best thing for me. I just attacked every single day.”

Ross and fellow transfers Kyron Hudson (USC) and Trebor Pena (Syracuse) already have made an impact with the Lions, who were subpar at that position the last two seasons.

“I never came in here thinking, ‘Oh, I’ve already played college football and I deserved something,’ ” Ross said. “I wanted to pride myself on just working hard, earning the respect of my teammates and coaches and doing whatever I can to help the team win.”

Running to the top: Kaytron Allen and Nick Singleton capped the victory Saturday with touchdown runs in the final four minutes and topped 3,000 rushing yards in their Penn State careers.

Allen ran 16 times for a career-high 144 yards and a 67-yard TD run. He now ranks eighth in school history with 3,064 yards.

Singleton, the former Gov. Mifflin star, rushed 13 times for 76 yards and a 5-yard scoring burst. He ranks ninth at Penn State with 3,007 yards.

“It’s crazy, for real,” Allen said about reaching 3,000 with Singleton. “I hope at the end of the year we can be tied (for the all-time record).”

Coleman emerges: Freshman defensive end Chaz Coleman didn’t enroll at Penn State until after spring practice, but he’s backing up the compliments he received from Franklin and defensive coordinator Jim Knowles during training camp.

Coleman made four solo stops, two tackles for loss, one sack, one pass breakup and two quarterback hurries against FIU. He also had a strip sack in the fourth quarter, forcing and recovering a fumble and returning it 39 yards to set up a TD.

“The dude’s just a workhorse,” linebacker Dominic DeLuca said. “He’s trying to get better every day. He’s still learning. He’s asking questions and getting to know the defense. It’s allowing him to play faster.”

On the block: DeLuca blocked a punt for the third time in his career in the second quarter Saturday.

He’s one off the school record shared by Hall of Fame linebacker Jack Ham, who’s the Penn State radio analyst, and Andre Collins, who was an All-American in 1989.

“We talked about it all week that you have to have the mindset that you’re going to come free,” said DeLuca, Penn State’s special teams captain. “You never know who’s going to come free and make the block.

“Getting a hand on it was awesome. I was just making sure I got in front of the guy. I got there so quick, I just wanted to make sure I actually hit the ball and didn’t let him run.”

Source: Berkshire mont