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Penn State football takes major leap in ESPN’s Football Power Index

By Justin Grasso

STATE COLLEGE, PA - AUGUST 31: Devyn Ford #28 of the Penn State Nittany Lions celebrates with KJ Hamler #1 and Justin Shorter #6 after scoring a touchdown against the Idaho Vandals during the first half at Beaver Stadium on August 31, 2019 in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
STATE COLLEGE, PA - AUGUST 31: Devyn Ford #28 of the Penn State Nittany Lions celebrates with KJ Hamler #1 and Justin Shorter #6 after scoring a touchdown against the Idaho Vandals during the first half at Beaver Stadium on August 31, 2019 in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) /
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Penn State football’s monster win this past Saturday gave them a big leap in ESPN’s Football Power Index.

Penn State football was nothing but a question mark around this time last week. They were wrapping up their summer practices and preparing for their first battle of the 2019 NCAA Football season, which was set to take place in front of the fans at Beaver Stadium.

A couple of days prior to the week one preparation, Penn State named a different starting quarterback for the first time since the Nittany Lions’ 2016 season. Redshirt sophomore Sean Clifford was assumed to take the role from the beginning.

First, though, he had to earn through a battle with the freshman, Will Levis. Ultimately, the decision came down to seniority. Clifford has two offseasons worth of experience under his belt. Levis had none. Therefore, the decision came naturally to Penn State’s head coach, James Franklin.

Due to the transition of the school’s All-Time passing leader to an unproven Sophomore, Penn State didn’t exactly have ‘the juice’ in the Big Ten. With so many unknowns, it was hard to honestly give them a rating without any sort of sample size in 2019.

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For that, Penn State listed 12th on ESPN’s Football Power Index just last week. On Saturday, the Lions made their season debut, and they made it in style. Despite a slow start on offense, Penn State made up for the early struggles with a violent beatdown on the scoreboard.

After Saturday’s game, the Nittany Lions were walking away from a 79-7 victory over the Idaho Vandals. While the Lions were expected to win with authority, they inevitably took it up a notch. For that, they leaped seven spots on the updates ESPN Football Power Index.

Where do the Lions rank now?

Heading into week two, the Lions took quite a jump. Before, they were shockingly in front of Ohio State on the list but still placed behind the Michigan Wolverines. This time around though, the Nittany Lions headline the Big Ten on the FPI.

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Michigan isn’t far off, as they place just behind Penn State at six. However, the Lions’ conference win percentage took a massive jump, and their assumed record improved as well. Before, the FPI had the Lions winning roughly nine games. Now, they’re projected at 10.4-2.1. Their conference win percentage? A Big Ten’s best, 37.8-percent. For comparison, Michigan is at 22.9-percent.

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