A preseason top-ranked Penn State implodes, leading to a shocking coaching change and a disappointing season. Can they rebound?
Following a 27-24 loss to Notre Dame in the 2024 College Football Playoff semifinal at the Orange Bowl, Penn State had high expectations of running it back under head coach James Franklin last season.
Blink.
Franklin was fired six games later with a 3-3 record.
With quarterback Drew Allar and several pieces returning in 2025, PSU was ranked ranked No. 2 in Week 1... right behind Texas.
The team looked dysfunctional early on and would go on to finish the campaign 7-6 with a 22-10 win over Clemson in the Pinstripe Bowl.
During his college football show on Wednesday, Josh Pate suggested PSU's season was one of the most shocking things to happen in the sport in 2025.
"The way Penn State's season went last year may be more shocking to me than the way Indiana's season went," Pate said. "Because Penn State started pre-season top ten... and if you looked at their schedule last year, what did they have?
"You knew they had Oregon at home early, but remember the build up to that. It was Oregon with a young team having to go cross country. It was their first big road game."
Pate thought PSU's veteran roster could handle its business in the Big Ten. He thought Penn State losing two games would be the worst case scenario.
Pate was still surprised the Nittany Lions fired Franklin.
"But point being, if you would have told me even in the fall, early fall, August, let's go pre-season, pick which one will be more shocking--Indiana wins a national title or James Franklin is fired, what, before Halloween? I would have said the latter," he said.
"Especially if you told me there's gonna be no scandal. Like he's not getting fired because some breaking news story erupted. I would have thought the latter was more shocking. And it did happen that way and I stand by it.”
PSU is hoping for a shocking turnaround in 2026 under new head coach Matt Campbell.
With a favorable schedule, the program could make the CFP if Campbell can the best out of his ISU transfers in the fall.