At a place known for star RBs, Singleton and Allen are doing record things

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- On the field, Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen complement 1 different retired of the Nittany Lions' backfield similar a scoop of cookies-n-cream from Penn State's Berkey Creamery.

Off the field, the prima rushing duo and longtime roommates spot fewer differences. They're some quiet, soft-spoken and shot junkies.

"He's similar my twin," Allen said. "We down adjacent similar the aforesaid person, conscionable successful antithetic bodies."

In their last play together, the 2 seniors person an accidental to marque past -- successful aggregate ways.

According to ESPN Research, Singleton and Allen are the archetypal Power 4 moving backmost duo to each unreserved for 750-plus yards successful 3 consecutive seasons since astatine slightest 1996. (Indiana's Antwaan Randle El and Levron Williams matched the feat from 1999-2001, but Randle El was a quarterback).

Singleton and Allen are good connected their mode to making it a 4th consecutive year.

Allen has rushed for 273 yards portion averaging 8.0 yards per carry; Singleton is astatine 179 yards and 4.4. The 2 person combined for 8 touchdowns.

Even much impressively, each is wrong striking region of breaking Penn State's vocation rushing record.

"Penn State's got an unbelievable past astatine the moving backmost position," Nittany Lions manager James Franklin said of an illustrious alumni radical that includes reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year Saquon Barkley, Pro Football Hall of Famer Franco Harris and 1995 No. 1 draught prime Ki-Jana Carter. "Great, large players. And yet these guys person shared carries their full careers. ... So that's a brainsick stat."

Evan Royster (2007-10) holds the grounds with 3,932 yards. Barkley is 2nd astatine 3,843. Allen (3,150) and Singleton (3,091) are each wrong 900 yards of passing Royster with 9 regular-season games left.

"Finishing 1 and 2 astatine Penn State would beryllium crazy," Singleton said. "We privation to permission present with a legacy. But our [main] extremity is to triumph a nationalist championship."

Penn State hasn't won a nationalist title since 1986.

But with a backfield featuring Singleton, Allen and seasoned backmost Drew Allar, the Nittany Lions judge this is the twelvemonth they tin yet get implicit the hump.

On Saturday, with ESPN's "College GameDay" successful town, No. 3 Penn State faces sixth-ranked Oregon earlier a prime-time "White Out" assemblage (7:30 p.m. ET, NBC) with a aureate accidental to jump-start its rubric quest.

"This is going to beryllium a connection crippled for our season," Allen said.

Statements person eluded the Nittany Lions successful caller history. Singleton and Allen each rushed for much than 100 yards successful past year's Big Ten rubric game, but the Ducks prevailed 45-37.

The Nittany Lions inactive made the College Football Playoff.

But nether Franklin, Penn State is 4-20 against AP top-10 opponents. Singleton and Allen person lone 2 vocation wins against top-10 teams -- Utah successful the Rose Bowl pursuing the 2022 play and Boise State successful past year's CFP quarterfinals.

After falling successful the CFP semifinals connected Notre Dame's game-winning tract extremity to extremity their inferior seasons, Singleton and Allen some considered leaving for the NFL draft. Multiple NFL scouts told ESPN past wintertime that they viewed the 2 backs arsenic imaginable second- oregon third-round picks.

But neither wanted to extremity their assemblage careers connected specified a crushing loss. They besides wanted 1 much play playing and surviving alongside 1 another.

"We some came successful together," Singleton said. "Now, we privation to decorativeness this disconnected the close ...