Penn State picked for College Football Playoff; former Lions coordinator set for WVU coin toss: Newsstand
Penn State news, notes, and updates for Aug. 29 include a College Football Playoff prediction for the Lions, headlines of the day and more.
It’s time to dive into Tuesday’s top tweets and headlines about the Nittany Lions and college athletics.
Penn State tweets of the day
We start with a College Football Playoff prediction. Longtime college football reporter Dennis Dodd, who is now with CBS Sports, predicts that Penn State will make the College Football Playoff. He also thinks 10th year leader of the Lions James Franklin will be picked as the sport’s coach of the year.
“In his 10th season at Penn State, Franklin has the security (Year 2 of a 10-year deal), the resume (2016 Big Ten title and first Rose Bowl win in 28 years), the facilities and now … the team,” Dodd writes. “Five-star prospect Drew Allar might be Franklin’s best quarterback. He’s got burners in the backfield and at wideout. Franklin has always been that good-but-not-great coach who is 4-14 combined against Ohio State and Michigan, 3-15 against top-10 teams and 1-10 against top-five opponents.
“That all changes this year as Penn State wins 11 games, splits with Ohio State and Michigan (don’t ask me which) and gets to the CFP without winning the Big Ten. At-large teams have littered the BCS and CFP field. Ohio State got in last year after being blown out by Michigan. That should make it three Big Ten teams in the playoff.”
Top 10
- 1
Elko pokes at Kiffin
A&M coach jokes over kick times
- 2Trending
Dan Lanning
Oregon coach getting NFL buzz
- 3
Bryce Underwood
Michigan prepared to offer No. 1 recruit $10.5M over 4 years
- 4Hot
5-star flip
Ole Miss flips Alabama WR commit Caleb Cunningham
- 5
Second CFP Top 25
Newest CFP rankings are out
In other news, former Penn State defensive coordinator Tom Bradley will handle the ceremonial coin toss on Saturday ahead of the Nittany Lions’ 7:30 p.m. meeting with West Virginia on NBC.
Headlines of the day
Former Penn State QB Trace McSorley released by New England Patriots: report: McGonigal, PennLive
T-Frank’s Film Room: Penn State quarterback commit Ethan Grunkemeyer vs. Medina: BWI
How Penn State’s James Franklin Could Have Been a Pretzel Mogul: Wogenrich, SI
Predicting Penn State football’s statistical leaders for 2023: Bauer, BWI
Cornerback remains a strength in 2023: Haas, Daily Collegian
Penn State adds another top prospect from outside the region to West Virginia visitor list: Snyder, BWI
Penn State Football Players and Coaches: “The Best Thing I Saw in Summer Practice”: Poorman, Statecollege.com
PSU coordinator Mike Yurcich to call offense from coaching booth in 2023: Pickel, BWI
Quote of the day
“This is the best team they’ve had in a long time. They’re extremely talented. As a team, this is a tough opener, not only because of the talent but you’re also going on the road. Fall camp is sped up. You have to work noise and crowd going into Week 3 of fall camp, because you can’t just do it game week.
“So, all of your preparation is sped up because you have to go play in a loud road venue. We don’t have the benefit of the jump of making a big jump from Week 1 to Week 2, [so] we have to be ready to go. We pressed on the gas and were physical. We’re not easing into this. We have to be ready to go from the first kick.”
–WVU coach Neal Brown on whether or not there is an optimal time to play PSU.
