Penn State football slightly improves ranking on AP Top-25 Poll
Penn State football improves with an upgrade on the AP Top-25 Poll this week after their win over Buffalo.
The entire game wasn’t pretty this past weekend, but Penn State football came out on top with another victory in order to advance to 2-0. As they prepared to host the Buffalo Bulls under the lights for the first time this week, Penn State was expected to take care of business with ease.
The first half of the matchup was everything but easy for the Nittany Lions. Their offense was pretty stagnant outside of an early touchdown bomb from Sean Clifford to Jahan Dotson. With confusing play calls and failed execution, the Lions struggled to move the ball on offense.
Meanwhile, the same defense that didn’t let up a first down until the third quarter last week couldn’t put a stop to Buffalo’s offense. In the trenches, the Bulls took care of business against an excellent Nittany Lions defensive line. Meanwhile, quick throws to exploited matchups made it difficult for Penn State’s secondary to slow the Bulls down.
Then, there was also Buffalo’s run game, which gave their offense a stable balance. All in all, Buffalo played a good matchup — for the first half. The second half? Not so much. As they historically struggle against Top-25 ranked teams, it came as no surprise that Penn State would eventually find an opportunity to take over. When they did, the Lions wouldn’t look back.
Nittany Lions improve their place
A 45-13 victory sealed the deal at home, earning Penn State an undefeated 2-0 record. Heading into the game, they were ranked No. 15 on the AP Top-25 Poll. An unchanged ranking after their 72-point win over Idaho. However, with the opponent being slightly tougher this week, Penn State was able to move up two spots as they head into week three against Pittsburgh.
From No. 15, Penn State will now have No. 13 placed beside their name as they gear up for week three. Seeing as though the schedule gets a bit tougher from here on out, each victory for the Lions moving forward should surely increase their spot on the polls.
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The Lions still remain third in the Big Ten when it comes to the rankings, but there are positive takeaways this week. Both Ohio State and Michigan took a couple of steps back. The Buckeyes were initially ranked fifth, and they took a step back now to No. 6 for week three.
As for Michigan, their struggles against Army left voters unimpressed. Sure, they won the war in overtime, but many believe they shouldn’t have been there in the first place. A made field goal before the end of regulation would’ve ended Michigan’s undefeated streak extremely early. They got lucky, though. However, they do take steps back as they now rank at No. 10 rather than seven.