The top four teams in the country will play in the College Football Playoff this season, and according to at least one college football analyst, Penn State isnโt too far away.
Foxโs Joel Klatt, an analyst whoโs paired with play-by-play man Gus Johnson on Foxโs โBig Noon Saturdayโ games which often feature Big Ten schools, has Penn State at No. 5 in his post-sprinf top 25.ย
Klatt has Penn Stateโ which finished 11-2 and No. 7 in last seasonโs final AP Poll after beating Utah in the Rose Bowlโ ranked No. 5 behind Alabama, Ohio State, Michigan and Georgia.
In his explanation, Klatt called this coming team the best one Penn Stateโs had โsince they won the Big Ten Championship Game (in 2016.)โ
โTheyโve got two young running backs (Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen), theyโre fantastic,โ Klatt said on his podcast, โThe Joel Klatt Show.โ โThe best tackle in college football in Olu Fashanu, and a new QB in Drew Allar,ย who a lot of people are excited for.โ
Klatt went on to say that heโs โvery interested in Drew Allar.โ
โThis is the type of guy that I think could be a top-end talent,โ Klatt said. โI think he could have a sophomore campaign similar to what we saw from (North Carolina quarterback) Drake Maye a year ago. Thatโs something to watch for when weโre watching the Big Ten.โ
Thereโs still competition at the top. Alabama didnโt make the College Football Playoff last season, but Nick Sabanโs powerhouse has made it there seven times in the nine seasons the four-team formatโs been in place, with six national title game appearances and three championships.
Ohio Stateโs made it to the playoff five times since 2014, with a national title win in the first College Playoff tournament and a title game appearance in the 2020 season. Since 2014โ also the year James Franklinย took over as Penn Stateโs coachโ Ohio Stateโs 8-1 against Penn State, with the most recent win coming last season, which is also Ohio Stateโs most recent playoff appearance.
Penn State plays Ohio State in Columbus Oct. 21.
Another Big Ten East foe, Michigan, is No. 2 in Klattโs rankings. Michigan has beaten Penn State in each of the past two seasons and has gone on the win the Big Ten and make the playoffs in both years.
Penn State hosts Michigan Nov. 11.
The No. 1 team in Klattโs rankings is two-time defending champ Georgia, for obvious reasons.
