The Penn State Nittany Lions were only a few plays from realizing a national championship appearance. Still, a Drew Allar interception led to a heartbreaking loss at the expense of Notre Dame.
With key pieces set to return this fall, including Allar, the Nittany Lions seem poised to contend for a berth in the title game if things break their way. 247 Sports' Carter Bahns ranked the Nittany Lions No. 1 in his latest Big Ten football power rankings, beating out Ohio State, which sat at No. 2 despite losing the head-to-head matchup against the eventual champs last November.
"Penn State is all in," Bahns wrote. "Following the model that led their two biggest conference rivals to national championships over the last two seasons, the Nittany Lions stocked up on veteran standouts ahead of what may be the best year of the James Franklin era. The running back tandem is elite, the defense is as stout as they come, Drew Allar improved last season and a seemingly improved wide receiver room continues to take shape. Trebor Peña committed last week through the transfer portal as the kind of reliable target Allar needs to lead the program to greater heights."
The Nittany Lions can't seem to get over the championship hump no matter how hard Franklin tries. Luckily, their schedule is strong enough where signature wins can happen quite frequently, which includes games against defending Big Ten champion Oregon, Ohio State and Indiana, to name a few. All three, like Penn State, made the College Football Playoff with the Hoosiers being the biggest surprise of the bunch.
Nevertheless, Penn State's high expectations are marked by Franklin's ability to take that next step. If a title is the result, having the core returning group will only benefit how the team will be remembered by season's end.
For now, only time will tell.
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