STATE UNIVERSITY | No. 4 Penn State took care of business Saturday at Beaver Stadium. beat Maryland 44-7 to finish the regular season 11-1 and earn a spot in the Big Ten Championship Game against Oregon next week. As the Nittany Lions look for an early start to the postseason, here’s what we learn from the regular season finale.

Pass rush continues to make the difference

Penn State’s defense was tough all night against Maryland and it started with a dominant pass rush performance. Defensive end Abdul Carter led the way with two sacks, his fourth multi-sack game of the season. Carter has set career highs in sacks (10) and tackles for loss (19.5) and it feels like he’s improving his position with each passing week.

“There are still a lot of games to go and a lot of weeks to get better and you haven’t seen the best of me yet,” Carter said after the game.

Opposite Carter, Penn State was constantly pressured by Dani Dennis-Sutton, who added a sack and three quarterback hurries. Defensive tackle Zane Durant also remained a consistent force in the interior defense. Overall, Penn State’s starters collected five of the team’s six sacks.

The Nittany Lions will need the pass rush to step up against Oregon to keep quarterback Dillon Gabriel in check. The Ducks are one of the best pass protection teams in the country. They entered last night’s game against Washington having only allowed 12 sacks, which was one more than Penn State.

In 11 games, Gabriel threw 22 touchdowns and six interceptions while completing 73.8 percent of his passes. If he can be this efficient next weekend, it could be a long day for Penn State’s pass defense.

Tyler Warren sets more records

It was another record day for Tyler Warrenwho, in another outstanding performance, set Penn State’s career receptions and touchdowns record for tight ends. Warren was the Nittany Lions’ leading receiver with six receptions for 68 yards and one touchdown, bringing his career total to 130 receptions and 17 touchdowns.

His best play of the night was a 29-yard rush in which quarterback Drew Allar escaped a sack and threw the ball to Warren behind the line of scrimmage. Warren then overcame a defender, his first such play since high school, and charged up the sideline for a big gain – another potential Heisman moment for the tight end.

Warren was Penn State’s best receiver this season and arguably its best player overall. The Nittany Lions will continue to rely on him next weekend as they attempt to break Oregon’s top-10 pass defense.

The Ducks allowed tight ends a total of 469 receiving yards in 11 games this season, which is 25 percent of the team’s total receiving yards allowed. One of the best tight ends in the country, Michigan’s Colston Loveland, rushed for 112 yards against Oregon earlier this season.

“He’s a beast,” Penn State coach James Franklin said of Warren. “Everyone says: You have to stop Tyler Warren. Every defensive game plan is, ‘We can’t let 44 affect the game.’ Everybody said that every week, but nobody did it.”

Warren will continue to play with a target on his back and it will be up to offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki to continue getting the ball to his best playmaker. It will also be up to Penn State’s wide receivers to be open when Warren is covered, something they are working on this season. Of note, Trey Wallace, Penn State’s leading receiver in the position group, did not play against Maryland after being listed as questionable for the game.

Penn State overcomes another slow start

Although the win was dominant, Penn State’s start was inauspicious as the Nittany Lions trailed 7-3 after one quarter. Running back Nick Singleton lost a fumble on the first play from scrimmage, leading to Maryland’s only touchdown, and the Nittany Lions gained a total of 1 yard on their next three possessions.

Penn State’s offense didn’t get a first down until its fifth drive of the game. That’s when the offense started clicking, scoring four straight touchdowns and effectively clinching the game by halftime.

“Obviously the game didn’t start the way we would have liked. Very sloppy on offense and defense but very happy from there,” Franklin said.

Luckily for Penn State, that slow start went unpunished as Maryland couldn’t get anything going after its one-play touchdown. The Nittany Lions defense held the Terrapins back for the remainder of the first quarter and then forced two interceptions and a turnover on downs in the second quarter.

Penn State has gotten off to sloppy starts in several games this season, including against Minnesota and Maryland in the last two weeks. Against Oregon in the Big Ten title game and later in the playoffs, it will be much harder to come back from starts like that.

“We’ve seen every scenario,” Singleton said. “We just know how to finish games that I feel like finishing, so we just have to keep going and keep going.”

More Penn State football

Penn State amends James Franklin’s contract to reflect College Football Playoff

Why James Franklin isn’t surprised by Saquon Barkley’s success in Philadelphia

Did Penn State want to make the Big Ten title game?

Sam Woloson has covered Penn State athletics for three years and is currently managing editor of The Daily Collegian. His work has also appeared in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Huntingdon Daily News and Rivals. Follow him on X @sam_woloson