STATE COLLEGE – Chubba Purdy entered the transfer portal after last season before deciding to stay at Nevada.

He probably didn’t consider where the Wolf Pack was opening the 2025 season.

Dani Dennis-Sutton and the Penn State defense made life miserable for the quarterback and Nevada in a 46-11 rout before a sun-drenched crowd of 106,915 Saturday at Beaver Stadium.

Dennis-Sutton, a preseason All-American, sacked Purdy once, made 1.5 other tackles in the backfield anf forced two fumbles.

The second-ranked Nittany Lions thumped Nevada and outgained the prohibitive underdog by a considerable margin. They forced three turnovers, including the first career interception for defensive tackle Zane Durant.

Former Gov. Mifflin star Nick Singleton rushed for two short touchdowns, backfield mate Kaytron Allen scored once and backup quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer ran for a TD in the fourth quarter.

Drew Allar #15 of the Penn State Nittany Lions looks to pass as Nolan Rucci #72 of the Penn State Nittany Lions and Dylan Labarbera #32 of the Nevada Wolf Pack fight for position during the first half at West Shore Home Field at Beaver Stadium on Aug. 30, 2025 in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)

Drew Allar was brilliant with a new set of wide receivers, completing 22-of-25 passes for 217 yards. USC transfer Kyron Hudson made six catches for 89 yards and one TD and Syracuse transfer Trebor Pena had seven receptions for 74 yards.

Kennett High School grad Ryan Barker made all four of his field goal tries from 28, 28, 32 and 39 yards.

Penn State played a solid first half, but it didn’t convert defensive tackle Zane Durant’s interception and King Mack’s 73-yard kickoff return into touchdowns. Ryan Barker finished both possessions with a pair of 28-yard field goals.

Allar completed 14-of-17 passes for 133 yards and a 31-yard touchdown to Hudson. Allen and Singleton were limited to 48 yards on 12 carries with Nevada’s line keying on them and often stunting, but each of them scored on runs.

The Lions defense forced two turnovers, the first when Dennis-Sutton stripped the ball from running back Herschel Turner and cornerback A.J. Harris recovered.

Penn State then drove 69 plays for its first score of the season, a 1-yard rush by Singleton.

On the next play, defensive tackle Xavier Gilliam pressured Purdy and forced him to throw into the arms of Durant. He returned his first career interception to the Nevada 6.

Chubba Purdy #13 of the Nevada Wolf Pack attempts a pass against the Penn State Nittany Lions during the first half at West Shore Home Field at Beaver Stadium on Aug. 30, 2025 in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)

But the Lions settled for a field goal when Allar couldn’t handle a snap from Nick Dawkins on third down.

Allar got Hudson and Pena involved on Penn State’s next series before Allen weaved his way through traffic on the left side to the corner of the end zone and a 17-0 lead.

The Wolf Pack put together its best drive of the half, but Kolin Dinkins made a tackle in the backfield and Dominic DeLuca sacked Purdy on third down. Joe McFadden booted a 29-yard field goal for Nevada’s first points.

Mack, who transferred from Alabama after starting his career at Penn State in 2023, sprinted down the field on the kickoff return to the Wolf Pack 18. The Lions, though, had to settle for their second field goal.

Penn State made its best drive with less than two minutes to go. Allar opened it with an 11-yard shovel pass to Singleton, completed a fourth-down pass to Devonte Ross and found Hudson in the end zone with 23 seconds left in the half for a 27-3 lead at the break..

https://www.mcall.com/2025/08/30/penn-state-defense-dennis-sutton-dominate-nevada-in-season-opener/