After capping its 2022 campaign with an overpowering victory in the Rose Bowl, Penn State made one final move up in the AP Top 25. And as a result, Penn State will have another top 10 finish to show for its efforts. Penn State closed out the 2022 season ranked no. 7 in the final AP Top 25 of the season, matching its final ranking in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll.
The final AP poll of the 2022 season was released on Tuesday, a day after Georgia throttled TCU for the College Football Playoff national championship. Georgia easily claimed the top spot in the final AP top 25, followed by TCU, Michigan, and Ohio State, respectively. Just like in the coaches poll, those playoff teams were followed in the final AP poll by Alabama at no. 5 and Tennessee at no. 6 before getting to Penn State.
Penn State moved up two spots in the final AP Top 25 thanks to forcing Utah to drop from no. 7 down to no. 10 and USC stumbling from no. 8 down to no. 12 after losing in the Cotton Bowl to Tulane. Tulane finished the season at no. 9. Washington ended the season as the highest-ranked Pac-12 team at no. 8.
Penn State, Michigan, and Ohio State were the only Big Ten teams to make the final AP Top 25, each coming in the top seven.
This is the fourth top 10 finish in the AP poll for Penn State under head coach [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] and the first since the 2019 season. This is Penn State’s highest finish in the AP poll since ending the 2016 season at no. 7.
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