1. Penn State Nittany Lions
2020 Preseason
AP 7, Coaches 7
Final record: 8-5
What Went Wrong?
One badly missed call.
You don’t go 0-5 with the worst start to a season in the program’s history on one play, but yeah, the entire Big Ten narrative might have changed if replay officials hadn’t whiffed the ruling on QB Michael Penix’s dive to the end zone in Indiana’s 36-35 walk-off thriller over the Nittany Lions to start the season.
That doesn’t excuse the 35-19 loss to Maryland, though, or losing to Nebraska, or getting rolled by Iowa. However, give the team a whole lot of credit for fighting back with four straight wins to pull up out of the nosedive.
For all of the issues, the offense finished second in the Big Ten, the defense finished third, and overall, the year season like an aberration rather than the norm going forward.
Why 2021 Will Be Better: Returning Talent
Penn State appears to be a net even on transfers. There are losses, but bringing in talents like RB John Lovett from Baylor and a few nice parts for the defense helps.
QB Sean Clifford is back along with almost everyone else on the offensive side, and welcoming in new offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich from Texas is a big help.
The D line needs work, but it’s Penn State – it’ll be fine. The back seven will be terrific, helped by the return of CB Tariq Castro-Fields and a deep group of linebackers.
Why 2021 Will Be Better: Schedule
– 2021 Penn State Football Schedule Analysis
Starting the year off at Wisconsin isn’t a plus, but the rest of the first part of the season isn’t all that bad.
Auburn is a big-name team, but it’s rebuilding a bit and it has to come to Happy Valley. With Indiana, Ball State, and Villanova in the first four games, and all at home, a 4-1 start – at least – is a must.
The downside overall are the road games against the Badgers and to Iowa and Ohio State, and there’s only one home date – Illinois from early October through mid-November, but the Michigan game is at home.
[protected-iframe id=”361699434b6d70baf15f631ed2408ac1-97672683-92922408″ info=”https://www.googletagservices.com/tag/js/gpt.js” ]