Super 16: Penn State earns highest ranking since 2017

The FWAA-NFF Super 16 rankings released and Penn State stayed consistent throughout post-Week 1 polls, landing in the No. 2 spot.
Penn State v. Nevada
Penn State v. Nevada | Scott Taetsch/GettyImages

The first release of the FWAA-NFF Super 16 rankings revealed on Tuesday, Sept. 2 following Week 1 of the college football season. Penn State football's unsurprising win over Nevada was enough for the AP Top 25 Poll, Coaches Poll, and Tuesday's most recent, the National Football Foundation.

The last time the Nittany Lions (1-0) placed second on the Super 16 ranking was Oct. 2, 2017. Now, they reclaimed their previous highest ranking following their Week 1 victory. Penn State received six first-place votes and surged up one spot from last week. With 797 points, it falls well below Ohio State. The Buckeyes received 44 first-place votes and 868 total points, moving up one spot, like the Nittany Lions, to No. 1.

Penn State and Ohio State are two of four Big Ten schools represented on the rankings. Oregon and Illinois are the other teams, sitting at No. 6 and No. 12, respectively. The Ducks received 597 points and the Fighting Illini totaled 219 points. Indiana, USC, Washington, and Maryland didn't make the cut, but received votes from the pollsters. The Hoosiers received 27 votes, the Trojans received 15, the Huskies received 12, and the Terrapins received six.

The SEC leads the rankings with six teams: LSU, Georgia, Texas, South Carolina, Florida, and Oklahoma. For the first time ever, Alabama did not make the cut and Ohio State takes over with the longest active appearance streak at 149 consecutive weeks.

The full Super 16 rankings following Week 1 here:

1. Ohio State (prev. No. 2) | 868 points | 44 first-place votes

2. Penn State (prev. No. 3) | 797 points | 6 first-place votes

3. LSU (prev. No. 9) | 750 points | 3 first-place votes

4. Georgia | 722 points | 1 first-place vote

5. Miami (prev. No. 10) | 631 points

6. Oregon (prev. No. 7) | 597 points

7. Texas (prev. No. 1) | 631 points | 1 first-place vote

8. Clemson (prev. No. 5) | 389 points

9. Notre Dame (prev. No. 6) | 359 points

10. Florida State (prev. N/A) | 263 points | 1 first-place vote

11. South Carolina (prev. No. 13) | 256 points

12. Illinois | 219 points

13. Arizona State (prev. No. 11) | 204 points

14. Michigan | 165 points

15. Florida (prev. N/A) | 133 points

16. Oklahoma (prev. N/A) | 100 points