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UNIVERSITY PARK - This was a mismatch.
Penn State dominated Maryland from the start and cruised to a 30-0 victory before 108,796 on a rainy Saturday at Beaver Stadium.
Freshman running back Nick Singleton led the Lions' offense by rushing 122 yards on 11 carries and touchdown runs of 45 and 27 yards.
The Lions scored on their first series with Sean Clifford hitting tight end Brenton Strange for a 3-yard score.
For the game, Clifford completed 12-of-23 passes for 139 yards and a touchdown. He broke Trace McSorley's career record for passing yards of 9,899. (McSorley congratulated Clifford on the achievement via Twitter during the game).
Freshman QB Drew Allar entered with 3:38 left in the third quarter and the Lions leading 30-0. He completed 3-of-6 for 18 yards. Previous backup Christian Veilleux finished up.
Singleton's 45-yard score gave the Lions a 14-0 lead in the first quarter, then he followed that with a 27-yard score with 7:25 left in the first half.
Both plays came out of fourth-and-1 situations.
Jake Pinegar kicked a 50-yard field goal for the second-straight week and added a 46-yarder to close the half, which the Lions carried 27-0.
Penn State's defense made seven sacks and nine tackles for loss. Freshman linebacker Abdul Carter led the way with seven tackles, including three solos and a sack.
Maryland was really never in the game as it was outgained 296-27 in the first half alone and 413-134 for the game.
The Lions were without several starters due to injuries -- Joey Porter Jr. and Curtis Jacobs on defense and offensive linemen Olu Fashanu, who missed his second straight game. Guard Landon Tengwall had previously been declared out for the year.
An odd, comical situation occurred in the first half when Penn State coach James Franklin was penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct. He could then be seen doing pushups on the sideline to make amends.
The Lions (8-2 overall and 5-2 in the Big Ten) visit Rutgers on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. The Big Ten Network will televise. The Terps (6-4 and 3-4) and will host Ohio State next Saturday.
The Mirror will have a full report in Penn State Extra on Monday.