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Beau Pribula helps No. 3 Penn State overcome loss of Allar in 28-13 victory over Wisconsin

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Penn State’s Beau Pribula said he got a simple message from Drew Allar before taking over for the injured quarterback in the second half Saturday night.

“Hold it down,” Pribula recalled hearing.

That’s exactly what he did.

Pribula led touchdown drives on back-to-back series, and Jaylen Reed put No. 3 Penn State ahead for good on a 19-yard interception return as the Nittany Lions overcame Allar’s injury to beat Wisconsin 28-13.

The second-half comeback assured that Penn State (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten) would carry an unbeaten record into next weekend’s home showdown with No. 4 Ohio State.

Allar went into the locker room before his teammates in the final minute of the first half after he landed a little awkwardly while getting sacked on Penn State’s last series of the second quarter. Allar came back onto the field for the second half wearing a brace around his left knee, but he remained on the sideline for the rest of the night.

Penn State coach James Franklin had no immediate update on Allar’s situation after the game. Pribula credited Allar for helping him throughout Penn State’s second-half surge.

“He was great all game supporting me and giving me tips if he sees certain stuff on the field,” Pribula said.

The Nittany Lions trailed 10-7 at the time of Allar’s exit. Penn State also lost defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton and offensive tackle Anthony Donkoh to injuries.

Reed and Pribula helped make sure the Nittany Lions remained unbeaten anyway.

“Just a gutsy win,” Franklin said. “You lose your starting quarterback. You lose your starting d-end. You lose your starting offensive tackle. Next man up. No excuses. I thought it was just a gutsy culture win from my perspective.”

Pribula went 11 of 13 for 98 yards through the air, including a 1-yard touchdown to Khalil Dinkins. He also rushed for 28 yards on six carries as Penn State outscored Wisconsin 21-3 in the second half to snap the Badgers’ (5-3, 3-2) three-game winning streak.

“I’ve prepared super well all week, every week for occasions like this, just in case,” Pribula said. “I had confidence in myself. I just needed everybody to know that nothing was going to change. We were going to be just fine.”

But it was Reed who delivered the biggest play of the night.

Throwing from his own end zone on third-and-14 from the 8, Wisconsin’s Braedyn Locke sent a pass across the middle that went directly to Reed. The Penn State safety then raced into the right corner of the end zone to put the Nittany Lions ahead 14-10 with 6:29 left in the third quarter.

“(I was) pretty surprised,” Reed said. “I thought he would have seen me, but I guess he didn’t. I appreciate it.”

Locke made no excuses afterward.

“I’ve got to make a better decision and not throw it to the other team,” said Locke, who went 22 of 42 for 217 yards.

Locke bounced back on Wisconsin’s next series by throwing a 33-yard pass to CJ Williams that set up a Nathanial Vakos 32-yard field goal, cutting Penn State’s advantage to 14-13. Pribula answered by leading Penn State into the end zone on each of its next two possessions.

“He made some plays in the second half that were really, really big,” Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell said.

Pribula capped a 13-play, 81-yard drive by finding a wide-open Dinkins in the back of the end zone with 10:01 left in the game. After Wisconsin went three-and-out on its next series, Penn State scored again on Kaytron Allen’s 24-yard scamper with 3:10 remaining.

Before leaving the game, Allar went 14 of 18 for 148 yards in the first half with a 6-yard touchdown pass to Nick Singleton, who made a one-handed grab. Allar also fumbled away a fourth-and-inches snap on the Wisconsin 28 to thwart a scoring opportunity on the Nittany Lions’ opening series.

Wisconsin led 10-7 at the half thanks to a Vakos 50-yard field goal on the game’s first series and a Tawee Walker 1-yard touchdown run with 1:23 left in the second quarter. Vakos’ field goal followed a 15-yard run by punter Atticus Bertrams on a fake punt.

The takeaway

Penn State: The Nittany Lions showcased their depth by dominating the second half without a few key players. Penn State also outrushed Wisconsin 173-81, with Allen gaining 86 yards on 11 carries while Walker was limited to 59 yards on 22 attempts.

Wisconsin: The Badgers blew a golden opportunity to change their recent history of struggles against ranked teams. Wisconsin is 2-14 in its last 16 games against Top 25 teams, including an 0-5 mark under second-year coach Luke Fickell.