Penn State Football Opens in Top-5 of Major Poll, Receives 14 First Place Votes
The college football season will kick off from Ireland in under three weeks when Kansas State takes on Iowa State. Since the season is soon approaching, that means preseason rankings are starting to be published, and Penn State Football is generating major buzz.
On Monday, the preseason coaches’ poll was released, and Penn State was ranked third, right behind Texas at one and Ohio State at two.
The Nittany Lions came away with 14 first-place votes, while Texas had 28 and Ohio State had 20.
Penn State Football should be one of the favorites to win the national championship this season, with them returning a handful of impact players from last year, like quarterback Drew Allar and running backs Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen.
Penn State Among Big Ten Heavyweights in 2025
Including Ohio State and Penn State, six Big Ten schools were ranked in the Top 25. Oregon, Illinois, Michigan, and Indiana were the other four Big Ten teams to be in the field.
The Nittany Lions will face three of the schools in the coaches’ preseason Top 25, taking on Oregon and Indiana at home, and then face the Buckeyes in Columbus.
Penn State will need to ensure it takes two of those contests, or it could be challenging for them to make the College Football Playoff.
With a non-conference schedule of Nevada, Villanova, and Florida International, it doesn’t give the Nittany Lions much room for error since they can’t fall back on a good non-conference win.
The Nittany Lions went to the College Football Playoff semi-finals last year, but the season felt incomplete. Penn State lost to Ohio State and then Oregon in the Big Ten title game.
Now the team from Happy Valley will try to knock off Ohio State and win their first Big Ten Championship since 2016, and try to win it all for the first time since 1986.
MORE Penn State Football News from NittanyCentral:
- Penn State’s Top Position Battles to Watch During Fall Camp
Despite Depth, Is Penn State Football One Injury Away from Disaster in 2025?
Penn State Football: 3 Under The Radar Players Who Could Make an Impact in 2025
