After a slow first half of the season, Iowa State transfer running back Carson Hansen has turned into a star for Penn State, averaging 113.7 yards per game since the Week 8 bye. In the Nittany Lions’ 42-14 Week 11 win over Minnesota on Saturday night at Beaver Stadium, Hansen rushed for 126 yards and his seventh touchdown of the year. The only problem is that all came in the first half.
Hansen was injured on his 12th carry of the day as he was stuffed for no gain on fourth-and-goal within the final minute of the first half. He limped to the sideline and headed to the locker room early, missing Rocco Becht’s one-yard touchdown pass to Cam Wallace to extend the lead to 28-0.
Hansen didn’t return to the game, but after the win, head coach Matt Campbell, who brought Hansen with him from Ames and has defended him even through his early season struggles, shared some positivity on his outlook.
“I think he’ll be alright,” Campbell told reporters. “I don’t think it’s a significant injury, but we will certainly know more, probably early this week.”
Carson Hansen didn’t appear to sustain a “signifcant injury” vs. Minnesota
Penn State reached bowl eligibility, improving to 6-4 with the Week 11 victory. That’s a step in the right direction after starting conference play 0-4 and falling to 3-4 overall. However, with Rutgers visiting Happy Valley next week and a road trip to Maryland looming in Week 13 to end the regular season, 8-4 is seemingly the most likely outcome for the Nittany Lions.
While 8-4 without any signature wins, facing one of the lightest schedules in the entire Big Ten, won’t be nearly enough to backdoor its way into the College Football Playoff conversation, Penn State could certainly finish ranked in the CFP Top 25. For whatever that’s worth, it’s certainly not a bad thing.
That’s probably still possible if Hansen, who now leads the team with 619 yards and seven touchdowns on the season, misses the final two games with this injury. Wallace has continued to run the ball well since his breakout performance against Purdue, and though James Peoples was inefficient with his four carries on Saturday night, he’s athletic enough to be a big-play threat and began the year as the team’s third-down back because of his pass-catching and blocking chops.
And yet, it would be a serious letdown to see Hansen’s year end on an injury amid the best game, maybe of his career, but certainly of his time in Happy Valley. The Nittany Lions have been without their star wide receiver, Koby Howard, since Week 3, and there aren’t many signs that he’s going to work his way back onto the field this season.
To finish the year without Howard and Hansen would be a real challenge for Rocco Becht and the offense. Luckily, judging from Campbell’s postgame positivity, that probably won’t be the case.
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