Penn State fans been through the wringer. Every damn fall, it’s the same trailer: wild recruiting class, freakish roster, and those classic “this is our year” vibes. Then comes November—bam! James Franklin face-plants into another top-10 loss. But this isn’t that same old script (Hopefully). Not this year. Because behind the curtain in Happy Valley, something nasty been brewing. And when former Penn State and fading Eagles Super Bowl champ start talking titles? You best believe people start looking up. Real ones know—when alums start chirping, smoke usually means fire.
We all know Penn State went 13-3 last season and was this close to sniffing the natty. Three losses, sure—but they came from straight killers: Ohio State (the eventual champs), Oregon in the Big Ten title, and Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl semis. Let’s not sugarcoat it though—the last L stung deep. Drew Allar had the rocket launcher out all game… until the one throw that got housed for dub and sent Notre Dame packing to the finals. Fans felt it. And former Penn State wideout Jahan Dotson felt it too.
chatted with former Penn State star & current Eagles wide receiver Jahan Dotson at an NIL event in Philly last month about being a Super Bowl champion, his expectations for the 2025 Nittany Lions & morehttps://t.co/Fb5ncqA8Xe
— Daniel Gallen (@danieljtgallen) June 1, 2025
247Sports’ Daniel Gallen chopped it up on X about what Dotson said at the “We Are… In Philly” NIL fundraiser. Dotson, now fighting for snaps behind A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith in Philly, didn’t mince words. “Championship. National championship,” he told Lions247. “We were right there.” Coming from a guy who played in all 17 games for a Super Bowl-winning squad? Yeah, that carries weight.
Dotson’s been watching from the rafters. Said he was up at State College a few weeks back, scoping the vibes. “I keep very close tabs on the guys. I was just up there a couple weeks ago, and they’re looking good. We can do it. We got the coaching staff to do it…We got the players to do it, so I’m expecting a lot of big things this year.” Penn State’s bringing back 14 starters — nine on offense, five on defense. That’s top-tier for any Power Five squad. They’re in the same all-in mode Michigan and Ohio State were before they made natty runs.
Quarterback Drew Allar is back and damn near a top-3 Heisman favorite. He threw for over 3327 yards last year with 24 touchdowns and 8 picks—some of them in big games, sure, but growth’s coming. The run game? Absolutely filthy. Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen both back, both cracked 1K rushing last season. That’s pain for Big Ten front sevens. Franklin didn’t sleep on the WR room either. He scooped up Devonte Ross from Troy (1,000+ yards, 11 TDs) and Trebor Pena from Cuse (941 yards, 9 tuddies). That’s grown-man production. Toss those dudes into an offense that’s already loaded? It’s lookin’ like Madden numbers on rookie mode.
Defense took a couple lumps. Abdul Carter gone? Sure. But Max Granville might just be next up. The redshirt freshman got folks buzzing after stepping in for Carter during Fiesta Bowl injuries. Gallen said it straight: “There’s a lot of excitement about Max.” Tom Allen dipped for Dabo’s crew at Clemson, but Franklin pulled a magic trick by snagging Jim Knowles away from Ohio State. That’s dub. No wonder ESPN slapped them with the preseason No. 1 spot. When the suits at Bristol start buying stock, you know it’s real. That’s a man who knows what championship DNA smells like.
And don’t get it twisted, Dotson’s clock is ticking. Philly didn’t pick up his fifth-year option, and last season was his quietest yet: 19 grabs for 216 yards. Respectfully? Those aren’t WR1 numbers. The Eagles WR3’s got one foot in the exit line at Philly. But that only makes his words louder—he is not over-hyping Penn State to stay relevant. He’s saying it because he believes it.
James Franklin’s Penn State 2025 season outlook & total wins
Penn State knows exactly how close they came to the big dance last year. One throw. One damn play. That’s all that stood between the Nittany Lions and the natty stage. So what did James Franklin do this offseason? He emptied the clip.
Daniel Gallen, who knows this program better than half the coaching staff, dropped some real insight on the Cover 3 College Football Summer School series with Bud Elliott. “The mindset of Penn State right now is that they know how close they came,” he said. “They’re very aware of what their shortcomings were.” That awareness hit different this offseason. Portal? Ransacked. Staff? Reloaded. WR room? Stacked. They didn’t just tweak the formula—they threw the old playbook in a bonfire.
Betting markets got their eyes wide open, too. FanDuel set Penn State’s win total at 10.5, tied with Ohio State and Oregon. That means Vegas sees them in that elite circle. They gotta play both squads, sure. But the rest? Winnable. Even Iowa, the sneaky trap game, isn’t lookin’ so scary anymore.
Still, there’s one ghost James Franklin isn’t shaken off yet—his record in big boy games. 4–20 vs. Top 10 teams. 1–15 vs. Top 5. And ranked teams overall? 12–26. That’s brutal. The last top-5 dub? 2016. Blocked field goal. Chaos. Legend. But that was nearly a decade ago. Fans are tired of the excuses. They want the ring.
And maybe, with the squad locked and loaded, the new faces in town, and even Jahan Dotson preaching gospel from Philly, 2025 might finally be the year Franklin shuts everybody up.
But hey… we’ve said that before, right?
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