So far, this Penn State team is proving Kirk Herbstreit right.
On the first College GameDay episode of 2022, Herbstreit said Penn State was his “sleeper team” for the upcoming season.
Fast forward a few weeks, and coach James Franklin’s team is 3-0 with two of those wins coming on the road in power five stadiums.
Penn State had its most impressive performance of the year this past weekend, pounding Auburn, 41-12. For Herbstreit, Penn State had the best showing of any college football team in Week 3.
Here are my top performing teams from Week 3!
1. @PennStateFball
2. @GreenWaveFB
3. @KU_Football
4. @FSUFootball
5. @UW_Football
6. @oregonfootball
7. @EMUFB
8. @RiceFootball pic.twitter.com/NdGEQGIHeL— Kirk Herbstreit (@KirkHerbstreit) September 20, 2022
Tulane, Kansas, Florida State, Washington, Oregon, Eastern Michigan and Rice followed Penn State on Herbstreit’s list.
Washington helped Penn State out to an extent by upsetting its Big Ten rival, Michigan State, 39-28.
Michigan State came into the game ranked No. 11 in the AP poll, 11 spots ahead of Penn State. Now, Penn State is No. 14 and Sparty is unranked.
Herbstreit showing affection for Penn State didn’t start this year. Back in 2005, Herbstreit famously said Penn State had the “best student section in the country,” and, in a complimentary contest, called Penn State’s students “crazy” during halftime of its win over Ohio State at Beaver Stadium in 2005.
Herbstreit’s former GameDay colleague and current ESPN broadcast partner, Chris Fowler, also spoke highly of Penn State recently, saying that Beaver Stadium is the best home-field advantage in the Big Ten’s best home-field advantage and college football’s best environment.
Penn State looks to continue to prove Herbstreit right this coming Saturday against Central Michigan. Kickoff is at noon on the Big Ten Network.
