Penn State Sports Magazine
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5 8 J U N E / J U L Y 2 0 2 5 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M P enn State will start the 2025 college football season in a place it never has before in the James Franklin era. In fact, if some media members are right, it could begin the year with the No. 1 ranking in the Associated Press preseason Top 25 for the first time since 1997. Preseason talk and hype are just that, of course. But Penn State married the best two ways to earn it, which can only be seen as a positive. The first box it checked is roster re- tention after a successful season the year before. Following a run to the Col- lege Football Playoff semifinals, the Lions return 63 percent of their produc- tion from a year ago, according to ES- PN's Bill Connelly. That mark ranks 33rd nationally and is obviously weighted heavily by the amount of star power that is back on offense. The defense returns some key players, too, although more big-time contributors will be sought in preseason camp on Jim Knowles' side of the ball than Andy Kotelnicki's. Speaking of Knowles, the second box Penn State checked on its route to earn- ing warranted preseason hype is com- ing out on the right side of the transfer portal and staff management equation. The 60-year-old Philadelphia native left Ohio State following its national title game win to join the Lions. He is now the highest-paid defensive coordi- nator in college football at $3.1 million, per multiple reports. And, yes, he is an upgrade over Tom Allen, who left for Clemson in January. Beyond that move and Stan Drayton's arrival as running backs coach, Frank- lin's 12th staff in State College returns intact, with key analyst adds like letter- man Greg Gattuso, who helps with the defensive line, and new assistant quar- terbacks coach Trace McSorley. On the portal front, Penn State did lose a number of players, but none of them were expected starters. Losing expected rotational linebacker Ta'Mere Robinson to USC should be washed out, at worst, by the addition of Amare Campbell from North Carolina. The receivers room, long cited as a problem for the program, has undergone a makeover. Seniors Kyron Hudson and Devonte Ross transferred in from USC and Troy, respectively, and both had strong springs in place of Omari Evans and Harrison Wallace III, who left in the winter for Washington and Ole Miss, respectively. Then, the Lions added second-team All-ACC receiver Trebor Pena from Syracuse in late April. That move, in particular, had outside observ- ers buzzing, and along with Campbell, made PSU one of the winners of the spring transfer portal window after a mighty fine winter showing. "We still are embracing the new as- pects of college football, but I refuse to just go transactional in the transfer por- tal. I don't believe that is the right thing to do for our locker room," Franklin said after the Blue-White Game. "Consis- tency is very important for us. Our focus is keeping our players here. When we're able to create a situation where you have a chance to retain your own roster, and they have a chance to make their best decision long term, and you're able to maybe take some of that pressure off that decision, it's something that we take a lot of pride in. "You're not even a part of these con- versations unless you're able to win year-in and year-out, week-in and week-out, and we've been able to do that as well as anyone in the country." When you add it all together, yes, this is a deserving top-five team. The No. 1 rankings aren't outlandish, either. Of course, none of it means this Penn State team will reach new heights in the fall. Preseason polls aren't always accu- rate, of course. But, according to post- ers at CFB51.com, 11 of the 15 August top-five teams from the past three years finished with two losses or fewer. That, in most years, will be good enough for a spot in the College Football Playoff. From there, it's anyone's ball game. PSU will need to do more than just make the tournament, though, to fulfill its all-in approach. It'll need to make the national title game to do that. Is that a lofty expectation? Yes. But has the program had the kind of offsea- son that warrants those expectations? That's true, too. It's up to the players and coaches to make it a reality. As May rolls along, the buzz will die down with the summer workouts beginning and the focus shifting to recruiting. Before long, though, Big Ten Media Days will start in mid-July, and preseason camp will begin shortly thereafter. At that point, the outside noise surrounding this version of the Lions will begin anew. It's been so far, so good, during this abbreviated offsea- son thanks to the long 2024 campaign. Franklin and his player leaders must make sure that continues to be the case before it's time to turn talking into ac- tion on Aug. 30 against Nevada. ■ O P I N I O N GREG PICKEL GREG.PICKEL@ON3.COM Retention Efforts Give Penn State A Critical Edge THE LAST WORD Preparing for his 12th season with the Nittany Lions, James Franklin was able to keep his coaching staff largely intact. PHOTO BY FRANK HYATT