The Nittany Lions’ dizzying utilization of this fringe Heisman candidate has been tough to track…but we gave it a shot.

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Contrary to the CVS receipt of search engines results that pop up when you enter the phrase ‘Tyler Warren’ and ‘Swiss Army Knife, we’re choosing a different inanimate-object comparison for Penn State’s do-everything tight end because, according to Pennsylvania law, Swiss Army Knives aren’t considered weapons…and, well, Tyler Warren is a damn weapon.

Therefore, to us, the 2024 Mackey Award lock and former high school quarterback (a little known/seldom shared factoid from Warren’s bio) is more like a medevial  Halberd – the most versatile hand-to-hand combat weapon in history according to a Jan. 16, 2011 Escapist Magazine forum post by Brawndo.

Here’s a pic.

Gnarly, huh?

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The scene in Camp Randall, as halftime approached with Penn State trailing Wisconsin by three, went from “Oh, well” to “Oh, (choose your own four-letter expletive)” in a matter of seconds.

The Nittany Lions had been riding that edge they’d been riding for most of the USC game, where they weren’t quite sharp but they weren’t in serious danger, a Ferrari with a sticky second gear. The second half, where the team had done most of its damage this year, awaited.

And then Drew Allar limped off the field.

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As far as bye weeks are concerned, Penn State’s second idle date of the season came at a pretty good time from the standpoint that the Nittany Lions are immune from the overrated dreaded trap game that often follows a big road win; if you don’t play, you can’t fall into that trap. And their next game, a night kick in Camp Randall Stadium, should be more than enough to bring out their full effort and focus.

However, in the wake of the overtime defeat of USC, some bigger challenges than a trap game might lurk ahead, and only some of them have to do with the opponents.

As of this writing, Penn State is ranked third in the nation in both the AP and Coaches polls. Its playoff chances this week were plus-95 percent according to one predictive model. A program that has struggled to get inside the velvet rope and hang with the true elites of college football for the past few seasons is not only inside the rope but has a prime seat at the bar, and the back pats and highballs are coming from all directions.

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