PFF gave its top 10 (plus an honorable mention) units heading into the 2025-26 season. Penn State football made it into a majority of the lists. The only area the Nittany Lions didn't break through was with their linebackers. Every other offensive and defensive unit, though, earned one of the 11 places available according to PFF.
PFF ranks Penn State's quarterbacks at No. 7
Drew Allar brings in both praise and criticism. Regardless, he was still up to be a first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft and will more likely than not be one of the first 32 picks in the 2026 NFL Draft.
NFL Network's Daniel Jeremiah posted on X, "I've been studying [Allar] the last couple days. There are areas to clean up but the good is really good."
Allar is coming off a season without reliable wide receivers. He threw for 3,327 yards and 24 touchdowns on 262 completed passes and had a 66.5 completion percentage. However, he also threw eight interceptions. PFF wrote:
"He’s my No. 4 returning quarterback in college football. Allar was the sixth-most valuable quarterback in the nation this past season, according to our wins above average metric, and his 21 big-time throws were a top-20 mark in the nation as well."
Heading into 2025-26, the starter has a better wide receiver group that made it onto PFF's list as well and the NCAA's No. 1 running back duo of Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen.
Behind Allar is redshirt freshman Ethan Grunkemeyer. While Penn State making this list is almost exclusively because of Allar and his NFL probability, Grunkemeyer was the No. 8 quarterback of the class of 2024 and a four-star recruit.
PFF ranks Penn State's running backs at No. 1
To no surprise, Singleton and Allen are leading PFF's running back ranking. Getting these two seniors to return is huge for the Nittany Lions. Both came into the program ready to set records, and they;ve continued to do so for the past three years. Their fourth year at Penn State should be nothing but star-quality. PFF wrote:
"The Nittany Lions were the only team to have two players on my top 10 returning running backs list in seniors [Singleton] (No. 3) and [Allen] (No. 6). Among returning Power Four backs since 2023, Singleton has the most receiving yards (682) and is the second-most valuable one according to PFF’s wins above average metric. Allen is second among returning Power Four rushers with a 92.5 rushing grade and 2,000 rushing yards since 2023."
The Nittany Lions also have Corey Smith, Quinton Martin, and Jabree Wallace-Coleman behind their leading duo for worst case scenario. All three were four-star recruits of their respective classes.
PFF gives Penn State's wide receivers an Honorable Mention
Penn State's wide receiver group needed adjustments, and head coach James Franklin made them. In fact, the three starters will all be new transfers to the program heading into 2025-26. Since we have yet to see them in action with the rest of the Nittany Lions, ranking this position any higher than an honorable mention isn't justifiable. PFF wrote:
"Their starting trio of wide receivers will be made up entirely of transfers: Syracuse’s Trebor Pena, Troy’s Devonte Ross and USC’s Kyron Hudson. Pena’s 475 yards after the catch last season were the ninth most among Power Four receivers, Ross ranked seventh in the Group of Five with 1,050 receiving yards and Hudson tied for fourth in the Big Ten with 13 contested catches.
"While losing superstar tight end Tyler Warren certainly hurts, Penn State has done an incredible job of recruiting at that position. The Nittany Lions have brought in a top-five tight end recruit in each of the past three recruiting classes and still have a solid veteran for the room in redshirt senior Khalil Dinkins."
PFF gives Penn State's offensive line an Honorable Mention
Penn State has five returners for the 2025-26 season, including Vega Ioane who is easily the star of the group. However, the other four can't be overlooked. Nick Dawkins, Nolan Rucci, Drew Shelton, and Cooper Cousins each bring experience and talent to the starting five.
All of the units on PFF's list noted top players in the line, making Penn State's honorable mention seem a little low considering how solid the starting five is together with four of them having started together previously. There's a "certainty" factor that arguably puts Penn State above some other schools ranked. Choosing one school that made the top 10 over the Nittany Lions would be No. 8 Miami, which even PFF has some questions about:
"The left side of Miami’s offensive line is a bit more uncertain. Markel Bell is the favorite to be Carson Beck’s blindside protector at left tackle and is a massive player at 6-foot-9, 340 pounds who started five games for the Hurricanes at left tackle last season. If he’s not up to the task, former five-star recruit Samson Okunlola could be worth a shot as a redshirt sophomore. The left guard will likely be redshirt senior Ryan Rodriguez, who started the opening game last year but suffered a season-ending ankle injury after 38 snaps."
PFF ranks Penn State's defensive line at No. 5
For Zane Durant and Dani Dennis-Sutton to be the reason why Penn State made it into the top five of this list is impressive, especially since PFF noted the lack of depth the Nittany Lions have in this position. PFF wrote:
"While the Nittany Lions might not have the depth of other schools on this list, they still place in the top five for the two superstars they have in [Durant] and [Dennis-Sutton]. Durant is my second-ranked defensive tackle in the nation after leading them all with 14 tackles for loss/no-gain last year. His 28 pressures were also a top-25 mark among FBS interior defenders. Dennis-Sutton could be the third-straight Penn State edge defender to go in the first round of the draft."
PFF ranks Penn State's secondary at No. 10
A.J. Harris, Elliot Washington II, Zakee Wheatley, and Zion Tracy allowed Penn State's secondary to just scrape the back-half of this ranking at No. 10. What puts the Nittany Lions in a good position with their secondary is their depth. Players who aren't, like Washington II, still have a positive impact on the field. PFF wrote:
"[Harris] finished his sophomore year as one of the 10 most valuable cornerbacks in the nation according to PFF’s wins above average metric while only allowing 0.76 yards per coverage snap. On the opposite side is junior [Washington II], who was one of the 10 most valuable Big Ten corners last season, according to PFF’s WAA metric, despite not even starting for the Nittany Lions."