Where does Penn State football rank in ESPN’s power index?
ESPN recently updated the football power index, and the Penn State football program lands just outside of the top ten.
July is finally here, and football season is vastly approaching. Soon, we will hear about the Penn State football program taking the field for the offseason, but we still got some ways to go. Lately, Penn State’s been on fire with their recruiting cycle for 2020, but eventually, they will have bigger fish to fry. Training camp is around the corner, and the 2019 season becomes a priority.
This year, Penn State is going to look quite different. The most obvious difference of all will be on the offensive side of the ball where the Lions no longer have Trace McSorley at the helm. The James Franklin era has been somewhat successful with the quarterback play, but this year we’re completely unaware of how things are going to go for the offense.
Obviously, it takes good quarterback play to become successful. And McSorley took Penn State to some great heights during his time in Happy Valley. But now the Nittany Lions are becoming one big question mark as Sean Clifford is expected to take over the offense.
Fortunately, the major publication networks aren’t losing hope in the Lions, considering the significant unknowns about them. In the eyes of ESPN, Penn State is still a Top-25 team. And with their recent update of the football power index, the Nittany Lions are still predicted to be ranked close to the top ten, thanks to their formula.
How does the football index operate?
"“The Football Power Index (FPI) is a measure of team strength that is meant to be the best predictor of a team’s performance going forward for the rest of the season. FPI represents how many points above or below average a team is. Projected results are based on 10,000 simulations of the rest of the season using FPI, results to date, and the remaining schedule. Ratings and projections update daily.”"
According to ESPN’s recent simulations, the Nittany Lions are looking to be just outside of the top ten. Right now, we are looking at a ranking, which puts them at No. 12. The projected win-loss column says 8.9 wins to 3.2 losses. The winning record is pretty much on par with most betting sites, which typically have Penn State’s over/under win total set somewhere around 8.5.
Next. Andrew Jones lands a gig with the Sixers. dark
With this rank, Penn State is currently predicted to come in second place within the Big Ten. The probability for them to win the conference is not so promising though, despite being viewed as the second-best on this list. Right now, it is set at 10.4-percent. That’s a steep drop off from Michigan who ranks at No. 4, with a conference win percentage of 48.2-percent.