Phil Steele says Penn State is 'really close' to contending

Everyone wants to know when Penn State is going to break through? As the best program in the Big Ten, specifically in the East division, not named Ohio State and Michigan, the Nittany Lions have spent some time trying to find a way to overtake either the Buckeyes or the Wolverines in the conference and national picture.

Now, Phil Steele believes theres a chance that this could be the season to do so. In an interview on ‘McElory and Cubelic In The Morning’, Steele broke down Penn State’s legitimacy. He said that past outcomes show that they’re not as far off as some would think, especially considering the pieces that they’ll have this fall.

“They’re really close,” said Steele. “If you go back and you look at that Michigan game last year? It was just a blowout. You think that was horrible. But, two years ago, when they had Michigan in Death Valley? I thought they outplayed Michigan. They came up short, 24-17, but that was a game Penn State controlled.”

“This year? They’ve got the players up front on the defense. They lost some solid defensive linemen. But they actually go 3-4 deep at both defensive tackle positions, they’re loaded at the end, and, in the secondary, they look pretty strong as well,” Steele said. “They’ve got Drew Allar at QB. The (Nick) Singleton–(Kaytron) Allen combo at running back is dynamic, an outstanding offensive line.”

In the end, though, Steele was unable to differentiate them from either Ohio State or Michigan because of their schedule. It becomes “a toss up” in his eyes because of that even though he does consider James Franklin’s team as “a legitimate contender” in the 2023 season.

“They do have to play Michigan at home. I think that’s a big advantage. And they do face Ohio State on the road,” Steele pointed out. “But this is a Penn State team that has that capability.”

“When I was looking to do the Big Ten? My power ratings have Ohio State, Michigan, and Penn State all very close,” said Steele. “So (I asked) whichever one gets the other two at home? Unfortunately, Ohio State plays Michigan on the road, Penn State plays Ohio State on the road, and Michigan plays Penn State on the road. So it sort of made it a toss up right there at the top. But I think Penn State is a legitimate contender this year.”

Ohio State and Michigan have completely separated themselves from the rest of the Big Ten, including from Penn State even though they’ve found plenty of success over the past seven seasons. Even so, Steele believes that, come next season, the Nittany Lions will once again be in the thick of things and have, comparatively, a more than fair shot alongside the Buckeyes and Wolverines.