The conversation surrounding Penn State at this year’s Big Ten Media Days was similar to the conversation that surrounded Ohio State at last year’s Big Ten Media Days.
In 2024 in Indianapolis, Ryan Day and the Buckeyes fielded one question after another about the expectations entering the season that they would win the national championship. On Wednesday in Las Vegas, James Franklin and the Nittany Lions faced many similar questions.
Much like Day a year ago, Franklin enters 2025 looking to change the narrative that he doesn’t win big games. While he reminded the media multiple times on Wednesday that Penn State has been one of college football’s most consistent programs over the past nine years since he became the Nittany Lions’ coach, the big black mark on his résumé is his record against highly ranked opponents, as he is just 4-20 as Penn State’s coach in games against top-10 teams.
Franklin knows the only way he and his team can change that narrative is to go out and win big games this year. And in a week where Penn State was named the favorite to win the conference this year in several Big Ten preseason polls, Franklin said the Nittany Lions are embracing the high expectations that surround them.
“There is complete recognition and embracing what we've got to do and where we've got to go, and the best part about it is we're in total control of it,” Franklin said. “If we want the narrative to change, we've got an opportunity to change it. If we want people to shut up, we can shut them up real easy. We embrace it all.”
Penn State hasn’t won the Big Ten since 2016 – which is also, not coincidentally, the last time the Nittany Lions beat Ohio State. But there’s reason to believe this year could be Penn State’s best chance since then to not only win a Big Ten championship but contend for a national title.
Much like Ohio State last year and Michigan the year before in their national championship seasons, Penn State returns a bevy of key veterans who chose to stay in State College for their senior season rather than enter the 2025 NFL draft. Quarterback Drew Allar, running backs Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen, offensive linemen Drew Shelton and Nick Dawkins, defensive linemen Dani Dennis-Sutton and Zane Durant and safety Zakee Wheatley are among a multitude of returning stars who will play key roles for the Nittany Lions. The Nittany Lions also hired defensive coordinator Jim Knowles away from Ohio State after his Buckeye defense was the best in the country last season.
During his interview sessions on Wednesday, Franklin did nothing to diffuse the notion that his team this year should be the one that’s capable of getting over the hump.
“This is the best combined personnel that I think we've had at Penn State, and when I talk about personnel, I'm talking about players and staff, from a depth, from a talent standpoint, and from an experience standpoint,” Franklin said. “So we're very excited about that.”
That said, he said the expectations he and others around his program have of competing for Big Ten and national championships this year are nothing new, noting the disappointment that Penn State fans felt when the Nittany Lions lost to Oregon in the Big Ten Championship Game and Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff semifinals last season.
“There's a ton of conversations that are happening nationally. We embrace that. We've earned that based on what we've been able to do and what we've got coming back. There's a lot of people that are excited on a national level talking about us,” Franklin said. “The reality is, when it comes to the Lasch Football Building or when it comes to local, these are always the expectations at Penn State.
“We had what a lot of people would consider a really good season last year. We were a game away from playing for the national championship, and you could actually make the argument a drive away from playing for the national championship, but it didn't feel that way, right? Because the expectations at Penn State are really high. We embrace that. I came to Penn State understanding that and knowing that. Our players did as well. So I think the conversations that you're talking about nationally are happening, and we appreciate that, but it hasn't really changed close to home, and it hasn't changed internally in our program because these are always our expectations.”
“If we want the narrative to change, we've got an opportunity to change it. If we want people to shut up, we can shut them up real easy.”– James Franklin on Penn State’s past struggles in big games
Wheatley agreed with his coach that while he believes the Nittany Lions are capable of winning championships this year, that’s the same expectation he’s had throughout his Penn State career.
“Coming to Penn State, that's always been the goal, to win a Big Ten championship, win a national championship,” the fifth-year senior safety said. “We love being noticed, being seen, but for us, we don't look at expectations. We're a hard-nosed working team, so like I said, kind of eliminate the outside noise, focus on ourselves, and worry about what we need to worry about, which is our first game.”
Allar also said that his expectation has always been to win a championship at Penn State, and he believes the Nittany Lions are capable of being the most complete team in the country if they put in the work to get there.
“I think for us, our goal is always to be in the Big Ten title (game) and obviously win it. Obviously, we came close to that last year, didn't accomplish it. And for us, I think it's always about reflecting internally on what we can do well and what we need to do better at,” Allar said. “So going into fall camp, it's gonna be all about us and finding what we're good at, maybe what our weaknesses are, and attacking those things to make them into strengths so we can be the most well-rounded team in the country and also be the most diverse team in the country in terms of personnel we can throw out on the field, the different types of players we have out on the field at any given time.”
Franklin has spoken throughout his Penn State tenure about having a “1-0 mentality” – meaning the Nittany Lions focus on winning their next game rather than looking ahead – and his players continued to sell that message on Wednesday. None of them were eager to talk about Penn State’s trip to Ohio State on Nov. 1, when they’ll be looking to snap an eight-game losing streak against the Buckeyes – though Allar and Franklin both said they’ve watched film of last year’s Ohio State/Penn State game with Knowles to get a better idea of why the Buckeyes have been successful against them.
On the other side of the equation, Ohio State has taken notice of the team Penn State has built for 2025 and the high expectations surrounding the Nittany Lions. Ohio State entered last season with a “natty or bust” approach, one they ultimately made good upon with their four-game run through the College Football Playoff to win a national championship, and Ohio State linebacker Sonny Styles knows the Nittany Lions likely feel the same way this season, even if they’re not saying it publicly like Denzel Burke did a year ago.
“I think they're probably natty or bust this year,” Styles said Tuesday at Big Ten Media Days. “That's how they're feeling. They've got a lot of guys who came back for their last year, (quarterback Drew Allar) and the two running backs (Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen). I know they've got a few guys on their defense that are in their last year as well. So I know they're going to be a great team.”
Of course, Styles and the Buckeyes are hungry to win another national championship and to snap their own Big Ten championship drought, too. So while they know they’ll be in for a tough game when the Nittany Lions invade Ohio Stadium in November, the Buckeyes will be determined to keep their winning streak against the blue and white going – perhaps now with some added motivation from Penn State being projected as the conference’s top team.
“I think for us, it's just taking this year and attacking it and proving all the doubters wrong,” Styles said. “And not living off last year's national championship hype. We're not looking at us coming into the season like, ‘Hey, we've got to defend our national championship.’ We're looking at this year, coming into the season, like ‘We've got to prove something.’ We've got something to prove every day and put a chip on our shoulder.”
