Penn State success built on December decision-making: Column

The methodology for defining success in modern college football is in the eye of the beholder. Securing a 10-2 regular season record, with a top 10 finish in the major polls and analytics, Penn State provides a clear example of as much.

On one end, the Nittany Lions outperformed all but the rosiest preseason predictions for the program. Oddsmakers set an over/under of 8.5 wins, with the Nittany Lions finishing 9-3 against the spread on a game-by-game basis. 

On the other, Penn State faced exactly two marquee opponents during its 12-game slate. Dropping a blowout, 41-17 decision at then-No. 5 Michigan on Oct. 15, and falling late to then-No. 2-Ohio State, 44-31, the toughest tests on the schedule resulted in losses.

That any dilemma exists at all to fairly evaluate the success of a 10-win season is, of course, part of the larger problem with college football’s wildly unrealistic standards. That conversation, in which anything short of a four-team College Football Playoff berth signifies failure, is for another day. It’s also one we won’t need to have anymore, thankfully, with the introduction of a 12-team playoff following the 2024 season. 

Those perspectives are missing the broader context of the game’s natural, ongoing narrative, though. And at Penn State, like the other living, breathing organism programs all competing for the same end game in the sport, that question is one of progress made. Or, in many cases, progress not made.

For head coach James Franklin this season, that answer was straightforward on the field.

“We’re getting better,” Franklin said in November. “That’s really your objective is to try to get better every single week; at home, on the road, with conference opponents, whatever it may be. I do think we’re doing that. I think we’re getting better each week.”

In so many ways, that sentiment proved true. And, coming out of the disappointments and shortcomings of the 2020 and 2021 seasons, for the broader trajectory of the program, it needed to.

An offense that had been inconsistent in games against Central Michigan, Northwestern, and especially at Michigan, largely found its footing. Running backs Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen each eclipsed 800 rushing yards, becoming just the only true freshman duo to do so since Steve Slaton and Pat White did the same at West Virginia in 2005. Tight ends Brenton Strange, Theo Johnson, and Tyler Warren all notched touchdowns in November, again demonstrating versatility and depth unrivaled in the Big Ten at the position. And quarterback Sean Clifford left Beaver Stadium’s turf for the final time with a four-touchdown performance, confidently guiding the Nittany Lions to four-straight wins leading into the bowl.

All of it occurred despite a rash of injuries. Those impacted the Nittany Lion offensive line and its focal point in the passing game. Losing starting left tackle Olu Fashanu, left guard Landon Tengwall, and right tackle Caedan Wallace to varying injuries, Penn State had to juggle redshirt considerations for its inexperienced backups and hide weaknesses up front. And, as though the absences weren’t challenging enough, Parker Washington was also lost. The most productive receiver in a room lacking consistency, he missed the final two games and will miss the bowl.

Defensively, meanwhile, Penn State responded to its midseason bloodletting with an increasingly dominant stretch of play. Absent a couple of top performers to injury, the unit didn’t miss a beat. Stud true freshman linebacker Abdul Carter, Kalen King, Chop Robinson, Kobe King, Johnny Dixon, and other underclassmen offered a tantalizing look at how the group will be led in future seasons. Together, they paced a defense that allowed just 40 combined points in the final month.

What’s more worthy of judgment, however, is to give recognition to the moment in which it has transpired.

Coming out of the disappointment of the 2021 season, a 7-6 affair coming on the heels of 2020’s disastrous COVID-impacted campaign, Franklin and the Nittany Lion program were faced with big, direction-defining decisions. So many of them took place at this time last year. Collectively, they would come to create the foundation and conditions for success the program can now build upon.

The list is lengthy, but hiring Manny Diaz to replace Brent Pry is a good place to start. So is the decision to offer the opportunity to Clifford and Jonathan Sutherland to return. The oft-criticized pair helped to form the foundation of leadership that was uniformly considered integral to the team’s success. Identifying and landing second-leading receiver Mitch Tinsley in the transfer portal is another. So is naming Chuck Losey the successor to veteran strength coach Dwight Galt following his retirement. Hiring journeyman special teams coordinator Stacy Collins, who has helped produce a top 25 FEI special teams ranking, counts too.

And, of course, maintaining commitments from the nation’s No. 7-ranked recruiting class, the group that produced the Big Ten’s Freshman of the Year in Singleton. It also brought in a gifted quarterback in Drew Allar, who is poised to become the team’s starter next season. That pair, plus the Allen and the contributions of seven other regular contributors, creates a grand scale of impact. And that impact is only likely to grow.

In the face of a situation loaded with consternation outside its building, Penn State produced a panic-free set of decisions. And through them, the result is one of which Franklin and Penn State football should be proud. More important, it’s also one bringing the program back to a path of steady progress. With that progress, the door opens to potentially better future achievements in which no range of interpretations is needed.

Critical to the program-building necessary to achieving sustained success, consistency yields demonstrable dividends. In an environment in which those dividends are paramount, it’s the real takeaway from the Nittany Lions’ bounce-back campaign.