Penn State had a huge weekend, but with it comes some sour news.
After football beat Temple, head coach Matt Campbell shared that defensive end Max Granville will be out for the season. When he got to Happy Valley in 2024, he was expected to be a major impact player on the Nittany Lions' defense and his College Football Playoff snap count was proof.
In 2025, he sustained a season-ending injury, but decided to stick around when the coaching turnover occurred. Campbell's staff was excited for what Granville would bring to the team, and he looked like a beast in the summer.
On Thursday leading into Week 2, Granville sustained another season-ending injury. Campbell told reporters in his postgame press conference about his status, but did not disclose what the injury was.
Penn State football starts the season 2-0
The Nittany Lions beat Temple in their Week 2 contest on the road, but it wasn't a clean game by any means. Following up their performance against Marshall was going to be tough, but they showed some resilience. That's important for this team in year one under Campbell.
That first quarter featured three offensive drives that included a sack, a missed field goal, a single completion, and a careless penalty on quarterback Rocco Becht's part among other things. After that first quarter, though, Penn State grounded itself and took a steady approach to in-game improvement rather than try and rush it. The defense remained pretty consistent while the offense got rolling, and held the Owls to nine points, almost making it through two full games without allowing one touchdown.
The win was a full-team effort as well as a mental victory, but it's surprising to see the Nittany Lions bump up the AP Top 25 Poll. They were the No. 18 team in preseason rankings, No. 16 after Week 1, and managed to move up two more spots after Week 2. Penn State is now the No. 14 team in the country, but Oklahoma losing to Michigan and Oregon losing to Oklahoma State are the obvious reasons why a few teams got a little boost.
Penn State volleyball upsets Stanford at The Palestra
The women's volleyball team swept Stanford on Friday evening, which was a huge win for the Nittany Lions' resume. They haven't necessarily struggled throughout the start of the season, but they have yet to cement a signature win against top teams in the country.
The Cardinal was the No. 4 team in the country entering this match with a 4-1 record. Its only loss was to Texas A&M, which was the contest it played just before meeting Penn State. On the flip side, the Nittany Lions lost a gritty battle to No. 3 Kentucky at Wrigley Field then swept DePaul before Friday's game.
Kennedy Martin (14), Whitney Lauenstein (11), and Haley Burgdorf (10) all finished the match with double-digit kills and were the top three point-scorers for Penn State. Burgdorf also only had one error against Stanford, hitting a 0.450 average, and notched two aces as well. Martin led the team in digs (13), with just one more than libero Ava Falduto.
It wasn't an easy sweep, despite the impressive numbers around the court. The Nittany Lions held the Cardinal to a 0.206 hitting average, but their greatest strength and area of improvement was their ability to finish out sets. That's was a critical error against the Wildcats, but in Friday's match, it was a different story. Penn State won the first set into extra points, 27-25, then the last two 25-20 and 25-21.
More: Pro Football Focus favors Penn State's defense
Following Week 2, Pro Football Focus released awards and teams overall across college football and for each conference.
In the Big Ten, Becht was named for quarterback, but no other offensive player got a nod. It was a different story for Penn State's defense. Linebacker Tony Rojas, cornerback Zion Tracy, and cornerback Audavion Collins were all named to the Big Ten defense.
Rojas led the team in tackles (seven total, five solo) and also came away with an interception. Tracy had five total tackles (four solo) and one defended pass, and Collins had three tackles (two solo) and two defended passes.
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