Scouting the Penn State Nittany Lions: Nicholas Singleton
With the 2023 Rose Bowl less than a week away, the Utah Utes and Penn State Nittany Lions are preparing to face off for the first time in history as the Pac-12 and Big Ten battle in the Tournament of Roses one last time.
Looking back at the two teams regular season results, several players were pivotal in helping each program reach Pasadena and will no doubt continue to play a key role in the game on January 2.
The following is a scouting report Penn State running back Nicholas Singleton.
2022 Stats
Rushing: 149 Attempts, 941 Yards, 6.3 Avg, 10 TD's
Kick Return: 310 Yards, 1 TD
Career Overview
A true freshman, Singleton has taken the Big-Ten by storm in his first collegiate season, leading the Nittany Lions in terms of rushing yards and touchdowns. He was also named Big Ten Thompson-Randle El Freshman of the Year and holds the most rushing touchdowns by a freshman in program history.
Strengths
Power
Explosiveness
Fearless
Good overall speed
Speed off the edge
A true-freshman, Singleton is one of the most impressive and promising running backs emerging from the Big-Ten Conference. Not only did he lead the team in terms of yards on the ground and rushing touchdowns, but he helped Penn State finish the year with the fifth best run attack in the Conference.
Standing 6-foot, 219 pounds, Singleton has really good size which he uses to his advantage when he attacks the trenches. His first few steps are also fairly explosive and if he's able to reach the edge with a few blockers ahead of him, that's usually when he can be the most dangerous.
Weaknesses
Inexperienced
Prone to make mistakes
Not great after initial contact
Pass protection
Receiving
While Singleton has had a phenomenal first season at Penn State, his inexperience is fairly obvious at times and its clear he's still adjusting to the college level.
As illustrated above, each of his weaknesses is more about his young age rather than truly lacking ability. When you watch his tape, Singleton seems to be a step behind at times, struggles to bounce off defenders, is not proficient in pass protection and leaves a lot to be desired in terms of receiving.
However, with all that being said, Singleton is a special player that deserves as much respect as any other back, and Utah will need to remain disciplined in order to slow him down.
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