Proud, Prominent, Penn State Football
An Orange Bowl Appearance Was Just A Start.
2024 Was A Win for Penn State Football.
PHOTO: Penn State Football/Facebook
Don’t despair, Drew Allar. Without you, Penn State could not have been 13–3. This season, they would not have been one of college football’s perennial teams. And they would not have been able to challenge for the Orange Bowl Title, AKA the College Football Playoff Semi-Final, aka the top tier of this year’s great experiment — the twelve-team version of the college football playoff.
And if the paramount intention of this grand experiment is to crown an undisputed winner of the national championship — well then — by that measuring stick — Penn State Football is very well positioned indeed. For almost 90 years of our history — the top college football teams have been decided by selection committees polling — which left a result that contains plenty of room for ambiguity.
Now — with the desire to claim one undisputed national champion and thus eliminate all room for dispute — here is why this season was a victory for Penn State.
Drew Allar
The growth that he has shown over the last season is immeasurable. Forget a bad decision at the end of an otherwise close contest. He has led the Nittany Lions to the brink of contending for a National Championship while ranking first all-time at Penn State in passing completion percentage and passing efficiency, among other categories.
He currently ranks fifth in total passing yards and third in touchdown passes for the Nittany Lions. All indicators are that he will return to Happy Valley for another season.
James Franklin
He has not only restored Penn State to the prominence of the Joe Paterno teams of the 1980s and 1990s but also elevated the Nittany Lion program to one of the finest in the country.
Early indications seem to be that Franklin will be returning the majority of a roster that came within one possession of competing for a national championship.
A Nucleus of a Championship
While many Penn State players will be making significant decisions about whether or not to enter the NFL Draft in April — only two have declared that they are officially leaving. Safety Kevin Winston Jr. and LaSalle College High School’s Abdul Carter. This means that the heartbeat of Penn State’s team will be returning for the 2025 campaign.
Take heart, Drew Allar. You’ll once again lead a Nittany Lion team with the potential to win through next year’s College football extravaganza. And besides, I have a feeling that Penn State will be battling Notre Dame in a modern-day clash of the Titans for years to come.
Just the way that it should be.
PHOTO: Penn State Football/Facebook
Discover more from Philadelphia Sports Nation
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.