Penn State football will start its season as one of the top teams in the country.
The Nittany Lions debuted at No. 2 in the preseason Associated Press poll released on Monday, their highest preseason mark since being No. 1 in 1997 and the highest under James Franklin. They finished that season 9-3 and ranked No. 16.
Penn State received 23 first place votes in the new AP poll, trailing only No. 1 Texas with 25.
The only other preseason top-three appearances for the Nittany Lions include 1969, 1978 and 1999, when the team started at No. 3 and finished at No. 2, No. 4 and No. 11, respectively.
This year’s ranking comes on the heels of a 13-3 season, including a run to the College Football Playoff semifinals. Penn State briefly reached No. 3 last season before falling to Oregon in the Big Ten title game, finishing the season at No. 5. Prior to Monday, the team hadn’t seen a No. 2 ranking since 2017.
With many key players returning and the acquisition of top defensive coordinator Jim Knowles, the voters have taken notice of what’s brewing in Happy Valley. The Nittany Lions were ranked No. 3 in the USA Today Coaches’ preseason poll released last week.
Penn State has now been ranked in the initial AP poll in eight of the last nine seasons, with the exception of 2022, though the team finished at No. 7 that season.
Previously, the Nittany Lions ranked as high as No. 6 in the preseason under Franklin, which came in 2017 — a year they finished at No. 8.
In the new poll, Penn State lands ahead of No. 3 Ohio State, who the Nittany Lions will meet in Columbus on Nov. 1. Penn State will face two other teams ranked in the preseason top 25: No. 7 Oregon for a White Out showdown on Sept. 27 and No. 20 Indiana on Nov. 8 at Beaver Stadium.
The only other Big Ten teams ranked in the AP Preseason Top 25 are No.12 Illinois and No. 14 Michigan.
The full top 25 rankings are as follows:
- Texas
- Penn State
- Ohio State
- Clemson
- Georgia
- Notre Dame
- Oregon
- Alabama
- LSU
- Miami (Fl.)
- Arizona State
- Illinois
- South Carolina
- Michigan
- Florida
- SMU
- Kansas State
- Oklahoma
- Texas A&M
- Indiana
- Ole Miss
- Iowa State
- Texas Tech
- Tennessee
- Boise State
