Rob Bolden ran for his first career touchdown and threw for another, tailback Evan Royster also ran for a score and Stephfon Green settled the shaky offense with tough second-half runs in the 22nd-ranked Nittany Lions 24-0 win Saturday over Kent State.
So a win for Penn State (2-1) but it was not a pretty win.
It started out well enough as the Nittany Lions scored on its first two drives for a 14-0 lead. First Bolden tumbled into the end zone from a yard out on a drive set up by D’Anton Lynn’s interception.
Bolden looked good again on the next drive after connecting with Derek Moye on a pretty pass down the right seam for a 55-yard completion. Royster followed with an easy 3-yard TD run for a 14-0 lead with 4:06 in the first.
But that was all the scoring for a long time as Bolden, making his third career start, reminded everyone that is a true freshmen. That means at times he plays like one as he threw up teo interceptions.
Bolden regrouped in the fourth quarter after connecting with Devon Smith on a 48-yard touchdown pass for a 24-point lead to put the Penn State faithful at ease. Quarterback coach Jay Paterno was impressed with how Bolden shook off his mid-game mistakes.
“As a quarterback, as a freshman, you’re going to make mistakes,” receiver Graham Zug said. “Rob’s doing a great job. He’s stepping in and taking a leadership role with the offense and he’s going to continue to improve.”
It was not Bolden’s performance that worries the Lion’s faithful. It is the performance of Evan Royster who finished with 38 yards on 11 carries. He has yet to run for more than 40 yards in any of Penn State’s games this season.