Has Penn State finally developed consistent nastiness and physicality in the trenches?

Rewind to just a little over one month ago and the Nittany Lions suffered a very disappointing 41-17 loss to Michigan where they surrendered 418 rushing yards on defense and only rushed for 111 yards themselves.

Both the offensive and defensive lines were dominated by the Wolverines, and it looked as if it was going to be the same old story moving forward for Penn State this season. Talented skill players, but lacking in physicality up front.

But credit has to be given to the Nittany Lions’ coaching staff and its players for getting better each and every week on both the offensive and defensive line. Penn State now truly has a dynamic rushing attack with freshmen running backs Nick Singleton (801 yards, 10 TDs) and Kaytron Allen (631 yards, 8 TDs). They also have a fast and furious pass rush that is making a significant impact on the outcomes of its games.

The Nittany Lions (8-2, No. 11) made a quick turnaround after the debacle in Ann Arbor, rushing for 175 yards against a solid Minnesota defense and were even effective in the trenches against Ohio State before two late turnovers cost them a second half lead and a potential upset victory over the Buckeyes.

Buts it’s been over the past two weeks where the offensive and defensive lines have been playing their best complementary football. Against Indiana, Penn State had 179 yards rushing and paired that with six sacks and 16 tackles for loss by its defense. That domination in the trenches led to a 45-14 victory. Then last week, 249 yards on the ground for the offense coupled with seven sacks and nine tackles for loss by the defense propelled the Nittany Lions to a 30-0 shutout win over Maryland.

Of late, the Penn State’s defense has simply been causing havoc for its opponents. On the season, 23 different Nittany Lions have at least a full tackle for loss and 14 have at least one sack. The 14 different players with a sack is tied for the most among Power Five teams. Last week, the Penn State defense held Maryland to 60 rushing yards on 37 carries. The Nittany Lions have held seven opponents to less than 100 rushing yards, including five Big Ten opponents - Purdue 61; Northwestern, 31; Ohio State, 98; Indiana, 65; Maryland, 60 - and they have held eight of their last nine opponents under their season rushing average.

The Penn State defense will look to continue to thrive off its recent momentum as it travels to Piscataway, NJ later today to take on Big Ten East opponent Rutgers (3:30 ET, BTN). The Scarlet Knights offense has struggled this season as they rank 114th in the country in scoring offense, 120th in passing offense and 121st in total offense.

The Rutgers passing offense has been pretty much non-existent this season, so it will look to get the ball to running back Kyle Monangai, who rushed for 162 yards against Michigan State last week. With Penn State’s success in getting after the passer of late, the Scarlet Knights will most likely try to establish the run early, which will be a difficult task for the 4-6 squad, which has lost six of its last seven games.

The Rutgers defense has been pretty solid this season, but with the way the Nittany Lions’ offensive line has been able to get push up front, Singleton and Allen should still have opportunities. I’m sure Penn State faithful would love to see quarterback Sean Clifford get off to a hot start as he been a notoriously slow starter this season.

Las Vegas has Penn State as a 19-point favorite.

A key stat to look at in this game is red zone efficiency. Penn State ranks 12th in the country in red zone offense, while Rutgers ranks 131st. The Nittany Lions have been able to move the ball pretty well over the past four weeks, and they will most likely get multiple red zone opportunities against the Scarlet Knights. The numbers tell you that they will cash in on those opportunities.

My pick is Penn State 38, Rutgers 10.