Latest news with #NittanyLions
Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Breaking down Penn State Football's must-win game for 2025
Can the Penn State Nittany Lions finally take down the Ohio State Buckeyes? J.D. PicKell of On3 recently released his 'Best games for every week of the CFB season' list. Penn State appeared once: November 1 at Ohio State. The Buckeyes have long decimated the Nittany Lions in their clashes, winning 10 of 11 against James Franklin, including eight straight dating back to 2017. Fortunately for Franklin and Penn State, this looks like their best returning roster in recent memory. Quarterback Drew Allar needs to take the next step into stardom, but should be heavily aided by the dynamic one-two running back punch of Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen. Plus, the Nittany Lions have some absolute weapons on defense. EDGE Dani Dennis-Sutton is coming off an 8.5-sack performance. CB A.J. Harris has first-round potential. DT Zane Durant is a handful for all interior offensive linemen. Those are just some of the top dogs. Perhaps most importantly for Penn State is the experience gained from 2024. While they fell short to Notre Dame in the National Semifinals, it was a breakthrough campaign for Franklin and his team should carry that confidence and knowledge into 2025. Ultimately, Franklin has to beat the Buckeyes. His job security has swung in the balance for years, and Penn State's inclusion in last year's 12-team playoff bought him more time. But, even though they made it within one game of the National Championship, the SMU/Boise State path was relatively easy, and skepticism remains widespread toward Franklin. All eyes will be on the Big Ten on November 1, and the Nittany Lions', as well as Franklin's, futures may depend on that game.
USA Today
11 hours ago
- Sport
- USA Today
James Franklin focused on Penn State's big goals, not hype, in 2025
Will Penn State live up to the hype in 2025? James Franklin embraces the challenge. As Penn State head coach James Franklin approached the microphone for his annual round at the podium for Big Ten football media day on Wednesday afternoon in Las Vegas, he did so with the eyes of the college football world on him like never before. Penn State arrived at Big Ten media day with many around the nation considering the Nittany Lions a top threat in the conference, and perhaps more. That rising pressure was not lost on the head coach of the program, who is no stranger to talking about his position being under pressure in the big moments during his career at Penn State. "There's a ton of conversations that are happening nationally. We embrace that," Franklin said to the media at the annual Big Ten football media day event, referring to the offseason talk placing high expectations on Penn State. "We've earned that based on what we've been able to do and what we've got coming back. There's a lot of people that are excited on a national level talking about us." Penn State returns a roster with an experienced starting quarterback (Drew Allar), a dynamic running back duo (Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen), a talented defense under a new high profile defensive coordinator, and a wide receiver unit boosted by additions form the transfer portal to help the one biggest concern on the roster coming off the 2024 season. Penn State played for a Big Ten championship and reached the College Football Playoff semifinal, and was as close to playing for a national title as they have been under Franklin to this point. "We had what a lot of people would consider a really good season last year," Franklin said. "We were a game away from playing for the National Championship, and you could actually make the argument a drive away from playing for the National Championship, but it didn't feel that way, right? Because the expectations at Penn State are really high." Penn State has been appearing at the top of many preseason rankings and polls this offseason despite not being the defending Big Ten champion (Oregon) or the reigning national champion (Ohio State). Penn State faces both of those teams in the 2025 season and lost to both last season. But Franklin is not wasting time worrying about the preseason hype train running at full steam. "It's a great conversation, but who really cares about preseason rankings? They mean nothing," Franklin said. "It's a good argument to have and everybody has fun with it, but the only rankings that matter are the ones that happen at the end of the season, and that's what we're concerned about. The only way we'll do that is by handling our business today." Penn State begins its season at home on Aug. 30 with a home game against Nevada. View the full 2025 Penn State football schedule and updated kickoff times. Follow Kevin McGuire on Threads, Bluesky, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook. Follow Nittany Lions Wire on X, Facebook, and Threads.
USA Today
a day ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Penn State takes top spot in USA TODAY Sports Big Ten power rankings
There is no denying that Penn State is preparing for one of the more anticipated seasons in program history after making a run to the College Football Playoff semifinal last season. The bar has been raised by many for the Nittany Lions, and the hype train continues to be roaring at full steam heading into the 2025 season. That hype continued to rise with the Nittany Lions landing on top of the Big Ten preseason power rankings from USA TODAY Sports college football writer Paul Myerberg. Yes, Penn State comes out ahead of the defending national champion Ohio State Buckeyes and the defending Big Ten champion Oregon Ducks, respectively. That has been the fairly common belief by those around the college football media circles this offseason in part due to a roster returning many key players on each side of the ball, despite losing first-round draft picks in Abdul Carter and Tyler Warren, and adding key transfers to help plug the void at the wide receiver position. The addition of Trebor Pena from Syracuse is considered a major upgrade for an offense that already added a pair of other talented wide receivers in the offseason. Penn State's rise to the top of the Big Ten power rankings is focused largely on the expectations for the offense. The return of Drew Allar at quarterback and both star running backs Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen gives Penn State as solid a returning backfield as we may see this season in all of college football. Penn State's schedule is also moderately favorable, with the biggest challenge coming with a road trip to Ohio State and getting Oregon at home for a primetime whiteout game highlighting the home schedule. According to the power rankings from Myerberg, Penn State will face five of the Big Ten's top-10 teams this season. Three of those games will come at home (Oregon, Indiana, and Nebraska), and the other two will be on the road (at Ohio State and at Iowa). You can see the full Big Ten power rankings from Myerberg via USA TODAY Sports to see how the whole conference looks in 2025. Follow Kevin McGuire on Threads, Bluesky, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook. Follow Nittany Lions Wire on X, Facebook, and Threads.
USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Penn State ready for Big Ten football media day spotlight
Penn State may have the highest preseason expectations of any Big Ten team headed into the 2025 season. After returning almost all of their prolific starters from last year, they have consistently been ranked either No. 1 or in the top 5 in the country in many preseason rankings. As the Big Ten media day spotlight approaches, more questions will be asked of this Nittany Lions squad and how they will handle this pressure. On Wednesday, head coach James Franklin and a select contingent of players, including star quarterback Drew Allar, will address the media and likely answer several pressing questions about the team's outlook for the season. On a day in which the onus will be on the shoulders of the Penn State contingent, Franklin and Allar will be expected to address each question with candor, yet also with belief and enthusiasm. This season will be unlike any other for Penn State, and I expect the media day won't be handled any differently. As the presumptive Big Ten favorite this year, the overarching narrative of Big Ten media day will surround that hype. After all, Penn State hasn't been Big Ten champion since 2016, Franklin's second year in Happy Valley. Almost a decade later, with only that title to his name, Franklin must face the reality of the situation, especially in this benchmark of a year. While he has gone 101-42 in his illustrious career, he is an abysmal 1-14 against top 5 teams and an awful 4-16 against Big Ten rivals Ohio State and Michigan. Their rivals have nothing to prove. Look for Franklin to ensure that these results can be reversed this year, and Penn State will come out on top not only in those pivotal matchups but as the Big Ten champion. Another storyline that could define Big Ten media day discussions is the play of Drew Allar and whether last season was a harbinger of things to come. After a career year in which he led the Big Ten in passing, Allar decided to return for an encore. Thus, he must deliver and most importantly, sustain the level of play he attained last year. However, just because Allar drastically improved last year does not mean he is perfect. He had four interceptions combined in three of Penn State's biggest games, including a painful one in the waning moments of their CFP semifinals against Notre Dame, which effectively handed the Irish the win. Expect Allar to be candid about those moments and discuss the matter in a professional manner. Allar seems like the kind of player who is determined to move on and redefine his career, and he will show that confidence often in the media day environment. Overall, Penn State's media day will be the most anticipated not just in the Big Ten, but in the entire country. With the added pressure of all the preseason hype they've received, all eyes will be on how two of the most important aspects of Penn State's potential success handle the weight of all those expectations.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Penn State adds second commitment of day from 4-star edge rusher
The fireworks continued into July 5 for Penn State. The Nittany Lions added a second commitment on the day, earning a pledge from class of 2026 4-star edge rusher Tyson Harley. Harley attends Gonzaga High School in Washington, D.C., which also produced former Nittany Lion offensive tackle Olu Fashanu. Advertisement Per the 247Sports composite rankings, Harley is the No. 2 recruit from the nation's capital, No. 33 edge rusher and No. 349 overall player in the class. Harley took visits to Penn State, Virginia Tech, Maryland, Michigan State and Rutgers before settling on the Nittany Lions. Following his commitment, Penn State's 2026 class remains at No. 14 nationally and sits fifth in the Big Ten behind USC, Ohio State, Michigan and Oregon. This article originally appeared on Nittany Lions Wire: 4-star edge rusher commits to Penn State
