The Penn State RB blowing everyone away at the Senior Bowl won’t shock Nittany Lion fans

For four years, Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen split carries in Happy Valley. And for much of the time, especially when he was healthy, Singleton was RB1A to Allen’s RB1B. But particularly in 2025, Penn State fans and Terry Smith all collectively realized that was the wrong pecking order. 

While Singleton is the better athlete, possessing legit breakaway speed at 6-foot, 220-pounds, Allen is the better player. Ultimately, in part due to Singleton’s history of nagging injuries, Allen surged into the lead role and finished his career as the Nittany Lions’ all-time leading rusher, surpassing 4,000 yards.

Now, at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama, he’s putting the NFL on notice. Members of the media who have made the trip to Mobile this week can’t stop raving about Allen. He’s looked like a star, and though he may not light up the NFL Draft Combine next month with an impressive 40-yard dash, he’ll be in the running for RB2 status in the class behind Notre Dame’s Jeremiyah Love. 

Kaytron Allen making his case to be RB2 in the 2026 NFL Draft

Allen, also 220 pounds, doesn’t have the burst or speed that Singleton possesses, but he’s a savvy runner with great vision who always keeps his feet churning. He was a first-down machine at Penn State, and that has translated to the 11-on-11 drills against other NFL draft hopefuls. 

This run in particular is blocked up well by the offensive line, and the threat of the QB run and pitch to the other running back (Singleton) holds the defensive end to create a run lane for Allen, but he takes full advantage. Allen gets north and south as soon as he sees the seam and is over 15 yards downfield by the time he’s first contacted. Once he did, even if they were going full-out, he wouldn’t have been easy to bring down. 

If Allen continues to play this well at the Senior Bowl, he’ll shoot up draft boards and be an early Day 2 selection in Pittsburgh this April. Singleton, on the other hand, is more of a flyer. He’s a great fit for an outside zone system with his elite speed and one-cut style, but his injuries are a concern, and he’s not standing out the way Allen is. 

Allen never stopped getting better throughout his time in Happy Valley, and it’s clear to NFL teams, as it was to Penn State fans, that at some point, he surpassed Singleton and didn’t look back.