Penn State football's dominant performance in Week 1 vs. Marshall bumped the Nittany Lions up from their preseason No. 18 ranking on the AP Poll to No. 16.
With the new ranking came some problems, though. Penn State played a nearly perfect game in its season-opener on both offense and defense, so regardless of Temple still being a non-conference opponent, following up Week 1 would be tough. The other issue was Michigan falling out of the Top 25 completely, which was one of only three ranked opponents on the Nittany Lions' scheduled heading into the season.
No matter what happened around the rest of the NCAA, Penn State's performance on Saturday was proof that perfection isn't always achievable, even in a favorable matchup. The 27-9 victory on the road showed a consistent, stable defense that's only allowed one touchdown in roughly 118 minutes of play over the first two weeks of the season. On the other side of the ball, it showed resiliency against careless mistakes and general weak spots that the Nittany Lions have yet to find answers to.
Week 2 perseverence isn't enough to bump Penn State up the AP Top 25 Poll
It's early in the season, still, so a 2-0 start is still something to celebrate. Those first half, and really first quarter, mishaps are areas of concern if Penn State doesn't get them cleaned up quickly. The red zone and late down efficiency (and urgency) wasn't there, and when Big Ten play comes around, those defenses won't be as forgiving as the Owls' after failing on both red zone opportunities to start the game.
With that being said, it's hard to see the voters bump the Nittany Lions up this time around, especially with the Wolverines making a real good argument to get back into the Top 25 after beating No. 10 Oklahoma. The 15-18 range on the poll is a good spot for Penn State early in the season, and it's the most likely area we'll see it land while we wait to see it play a truly competitive and evenly-matched opponent in Week 6 vs. USC.
Ahead of the Nittany Lions at No. 15 is BYU. The Cougars played Arizona in Week 2, beating the Big 12 foe 28-17. Penn State beating an AAC opponent with some problems popping up isn't convincing to push it up even one spot in comparison.
If the Nittany Lions bump back to No. 17, which is this week's prediction for where they'll land. If the Owls were a tougher opponent and Penn State showed that kind of resiliency, that's a situation where a move up on the poll makes sense. The blue and white had to respond to self-inflicted wounds rather than a competitive opponent in front of them and didn't show any real improvements from Week 1 to Week 2.
The updated AP Top 25 Poll drops Sunday, Sept. 13 at 2 p.m. ET.
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