Is Penn State running back Nicholas Singleton playing today vs. Purdue?

Penn State junior running back Nicholas Singleton has spent much of the 2024 season banged up after suffering an injury in Week 5 against Illinois that caused him to miss the Nittany Lion’s Week 6 win over UCLA. Then, in Penn State’s Week 11 White Out win over Washington 35-6, Singleton left the game early in the third quarter and did not return. 

Despite Singleton’s nagging injuries, head coach James Franklin is confident that his star running back will be ready to play in Week 12 at Purdue. Franklin described Singleton’s injury as “short-term” early this week and during his midweek media availability said, he’s, “confident he’ll be ready to go,” but clarified that, “medical decisions are out of my league.”

Singleton has played over 20 snaps just once since Week 5, topping out at 22 with 12 carries for 49 yards against Wisconsin in Week 9. Against Washington, Singleton played only nine snaps and ran for 45 yards on seven carries, but also had a kickoff return for a touchdown called back by a holding penalty before he left the game.

With Singleton’s limited role, fellow junior Kaytron Allen has taken the lion’s share of the carries, leading the team with 634 rushing yards on 133 attempts. Last week after Singleton left the game, true freshman running back Corey Smith 95 yards on five carries with a long of 78 yards. Smith and fellow true freshman Quinton Martin Jr. could see an increase in workload if Singleton misses the game or is limited. 

Nicholas Singleton injury update:

Singleton left Penn State’s 35-6 win over Washington with an injury that head coach James Franklin has since described as “short-term.” Despite Franklin’s confidence, Singleton will be a game-time decision for 3:30 p.m. ET kickoff in West Lafayette as the Nittany Lions look to go 9-1 against the 1-8 Purdue Boilermakers.

UPDATE: Singleton is good to go for Week 12 against Purdue.