Penn State is gearing up for its first-round Playoff game against SMU at the Beaver Stadium on December 21. The Mustangs will visit the Nittany Lions for the first time since 1978, with both programs looking to bounce back from a conference championship loss. But as James Franklin’s side prepares for a tilt at the national championship, they received a concerning update.

Jaylen Reed, the Penn State football safety was involved in a car accident on Friday. A Penn State spokesperson confirmed the news to Onward State on Saturday, writing, “Jaylen Reed was involved in a car accident. We are happy he’s okay and there were no serious injuries. He will continue to prepare for this weekend.”

On Friday evening, Reed shared a short clip on his Instagram story noting, “I’m hurting [right now], but I appreciate everyone that knew checking up on me. God got me.” Further details emerged when the Daily Collegian’s Joel Haas shared a snapshot from the clip, where the vehicle is shown off the side of the road with damage to the driver’s door and the front left side above the tire.

The good news is that Reed is said to be ok and his availability will be crucial to Penn State’s chances in the Playoffs. In 13 starts, Reed leads Penn State football with 79 tackles and three interceptions this season and has 4.5 tackles for loss and a forced fumble. He has significantly grown in importance since their third-year safety Kevin Winston Jr suffered a season-ending ACL injury in Week 2.

Talking in October about Reed, HC Franklin said, “I think he’s playing really well, and he’s not just a guy that plays really well himself, but he impacts others. You watch him out there running the defense, communicating checks. Just does a phenomenal job when he comes to the sideline, the information he’s able to give us is extremely valuable.”

Reed, a senior expected to enter the NFL Draft after the 2024 season similar to Winston Jr. He has proved to be one of the Nittany Lions’ most important players this season on defense shown by his versatility playing multiple positions. “Typically, you don’t want to be in a situation where your safety is leading in tackles. But as we know, he hasn’t really just played a traditional safety role. He’s also played the outside linebacker position as well. I’d like to see us get back to doing that,” Franklin said.

For Penn State going up against the SMU Mustangs may seem like an easy affair, but it could be a tricky situation according to an analyst.

Penn State warned before SMU showdown

Well, the last few days must have felt a bit heavy for Reed and Co. After all,  Dan Lanning’s Oregon Ducks left them in the dust. However, losing sometimes comes with certain perks too. And in this Franklin’s Nittany Lions have been extremely lucky. After all, on losing they will now have to face off against Rhett Lashlee and SMU Mustangs who are the No.11 seed. 

The upcoming face-off is at Beaver Stadium which will play a huge factor against the relative unknowns in SMU. But the Nittany Lions got a reality check from the analyst David Woods. On the Big Ten College Football podcast, the analyst dropped in some last-minute tips. Rule No.1, never treat your rivals too lightly. As Woods stated, “The first thing James Franklin’s got to do is half these players probably don’t have much respect for SMU.”

The analyst also suggested, “I remember Jimmy Johnson talking about it sometimes games like this you got to cause a crisis. You got to get your team’s attention as far as what the heck we’re facing this week.” It’s good news for Franklin—Jaylen Reed, his havoc creator, is fit and fierce and ready to go despite the unfortunate accident.