Post Spring Practice: Will Penn State Football be Ranked?

The Verdict

Sean Clifford being healthy is a factor no one can overlook.

The infusion of the ultra-talented 2022 recruiting class and key transfers will definitely make the team better in 2022. Young players taking a step forward in key spots is also something we can expect to see in 2022.

There’s so much talent on this team and they’ll be healthy heading into 2022.

On the other hand, Penn State lost a lot of talent and experience to the NFL and graduation. The staff did their best to replace the losses, but we don’t know yet if these players will be as good or better than the ones they’re replacing.

There is no doubt that Penn State is one of the 25 most talented teams in the country heading into 2022. The thing is, the AP Poll isn’t a talent rankings system, it’s a result based one. It also doesn’t help that so many other teams improved this off-season as well.

Penn State should be ranked at some point in 2022 but coming off a 7-6 season with key losses in all three phases of the game, the Associated Press likely will not rank Penn State in the top 25 heading into the season. They will be close though, likely sitting in the 26-32 range to start the season.

The argument is certainly there to put Penn State Football in the top 25, but voters’ last memories of this team is them losing six of their last eight games. It’s also easy to see voters just liking teams mentioned in the previous slide more.

That may be for the best though, as the team will have a chip of their shoulder and know that they will have to earn a ranking after a disappointing 2021 season. Keep in mind, the last time Penn State started a season unranked was 2016, we know how that ended.

Prediction: The AP will not rank PSU in their preseason top 25.