Penn State Sports Magazine
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Site Lines C O M M E N T S F R O M T H E L I O N S D E N A T B L U E W H I T E I L L U S T R A T E D . C O M FEBRUARY 2024/VOL. 39, NO. 6 MANAGING EDITOR Matt Herb CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Stu Coman Cathy Jones Chris Riffer WEBSITE PUBLISHER Sean Fitz WEBSITE EDITOR Nate Bauer STAFF WRITER Greg Pickel RECRUITING REPORTER Ryan Snyder FOOTBALL ANALYST Thomas Frank Carr CONTRIBUTING WRITER Jim Carlson PHOTOGRAPHY Daniel Althouse, Bill Anderson, Steve Manuel, Mark Selders COVER PHOTO Steve Manuel DESIGN Jeanette Blankenship Chris Miller F F F PUBLISHER Mark Panus BUSINESS MANAGER Linda Autry CIRCULATION MANAGER Crystal Clayton ADVERTISING SALES Maria Taustine (502) 552-4390 CUSTOMER SERVICE Cathy Jones, Stephanie Petchers (800) 421-7751 BLUE WHITE ILLUSTRATED (USPS 742-550) is published monthly, except June, by Coman Publishing Company, 905 W Main St, Ste 24F, Durham, NC 27701-2076. A one-year (11 issues) subscription is $68.00. First-class, digital and foreign rates available on request. Periodicals postage paid at Durham, NC 27701 and additional mailing offices. Printed by The Papers, Milford, Ind. POSTMASTER: Please send address corrections/changes to BLUE WHITE ILLUSTRATED, PO Box 2331, Durham NC 27702-2331. For advertising or subscription informa- tion call 1-919-688-0218 or write BLUE WHITE ILLUSTRATED, PO Box 2331, Durham NC 27702. W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M ON PENN STATE'S FOOTBALL OUTLOOK IN 2024 … I'll predict the future. The offense will be better. The defense will be worse. The result will be about the same. — Jason1743 I'd sign up for 10-3 right now. I don't think that's happening. — Brantt 2021 bowl game: Embarrassment, we won't even win eight games next year! Result: 10-2. 2022 bowl game: This team with Drew Allar can make the playoff!! Result: 10-2. 2023 bowl game: Embarrassment, we won't even win eight games next year! I'm starting to wonder about the usefulness of bowl results. — rs3524 I am a 40-year New York Giants fan, and I've seen them win four Super Bowls. I have yet to see Penn State win a national championship since I started following the program and went to the school in the early '90s. Truthfully, there have only been a handful of times we were even in serious consideration for one in the last 30 years. I really fear that time has passed for this program. — CJPhilly Absolute best-case scenario is three losses. James Franklin has yet to prove that he can beat good teams. We played three good teams this year, and all three did whatever they wanted in convincing wins. Our of- fense is a complete mess that won't be fixed in a year. Franklin has yet to show a commitment to the run game, which is what you need to beat good teams. Lastly, and I know I'll probably catch heat for this, but our defense was overrated. Again, we played three good teams. In all three games, we allowed way too many third-down conversions that could have changed the game. Major questions at WR, QB, OL, DL and CB. And as of today, no quick fixes at any of those posi- tions. — Mac34 I think 10-3 is an absolute reach for next year. We're losing a significant number of key contributors, especially on defense. Our roster is going to have some glaring deficiencies, unless we pull a rabbit out the hat with the portal (looks very unlikely). I'm thinking an 8-4 regular season is about the best we can hope for. — PineIslandLion Too many moving parts to make a realistic prediction. We don't even know what the roster will fully look like yet. With that being said, a lot of things will need to go right to win 10 games moving forward in the Big Ten under Franklin. The expanded conference makes things harder, not easier. Yes, we may avoid Michigan or Ohio State in any given year, but we will be traveling cross country, and the teams that were added should all be good (maybe not UCLA). It's going to be difficult. — _getmyjive11 I think most people just want to see Penn State beat someone highly ranked or elite/near elite. But we can't. That is factual, and I don't see it changing anytime soon. Next year stacks up as 9-3ish in my mind, with us remaining behind at quarterback, offensive line, defensive line, wide receiver and perhaps coaching when compared to the best. It is what it is. And in the world of NIL and skirting the rules being accepted, I'm not sure why it even really matters. — Lion4ever A lot of people are overreacting here. Our Vegas over-under will likely be 9-9.5 wins. We will be favored in every game except USC and Ohio State. There are more loseable games than in 2023, but that's just the new Big Ten. — ConcernedCitizen I'm in the camp of eight wins. We're going to have to score points next year — a 14-10 win over USC, Ohio State or Washington isn't going to happen. I expect the defense to be good, but not as good as this year's team. The reality is that we're going to have to outscore these teams. Good luck. — Biffkin 4 F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 4 James Franklin has led the Nittany Lions to a 22-5 record the past two seasons. He'll be looking to guide Penn State to its first playoff appearance next season when the field expands to 12 teams. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL