Penn State fans and college football fans in general haven’t thought too much about the “top 12.”
Mostly, top insert number here teams have been talked about mainly for the digits ending in either “five” or “zero.” “Top 25, top 20, top 15” etc. and then, of course, No. 1 is always discussed.
Since 2014, the words “top four” have been thrown around a lot due to the College Football Playoffs only taking four teams.
Starting this season, that number is tripling to 12, so, yeah, we’re going to stop hearing about the “top 12.” Penn State never made the Playoff in its four-team format. But had the tournament expanded to 12 starting in 2016, not 2024, Penn State would have been in the Playoff in seven of the past nine seasons.
With impact players such as Drew Allar, Nicholas Singleton, Kaytron Allen and Abdul Carter set to return, many will predict between now and late August that Penn State will make it to the College Football Playoff.
Well, if one outlet’s early preseason projections are any indication, not everybody is so sure.
The Sporting News has Penn State as No. 13, explaining that Penn State “might fall under the buy-low category, and that could be a good thing.”
“Quarterback Drew Allar and running backs Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen are back, and the addition of Ohio State transfer wide receiver Julian Fleming should help the passing game,” the Sporting News wrote. “Linebacker Abdul Carter is a first-round talent and is listed as a defensive end going into the spring. Back-to-back home games against Ohio State (Nov. 2) and Washington (Nov. 9) will determine whether the Nittany Lions are in the Big Ten championship hunt, which they should be.”
