Penn State Nittany Lions: Top 3 Takeaways from Week 11

The Penn State Nittany Lions hosted the Michigan Wolverines in the biggest game of the Big Ten slate on Saturday. The Nittany Lions came in with momentum and an opponent who had their head coach suspended less than 24 hours before kickoff, yet they fell 24-15. James Franklin is Who He is

Penn State head coach James Franklin is 86-38 (54-32) with the Nittany Lions, so he has had enough time to show who he is as a coach. He is an excellent coach but has failed to push Penn State to the pinnacle of the Big Ten. After Saturday’s loss, Franklin is 4-16 against Ohio State and Michigan and 3-17 against top ten opponents. He is who he is.

Penn State will likely go 10-2 and play in an excellent bowl game. The Nittany Lions went 11-2 with a Rose Bowl win last season. Those are terrific accomplishments, but there seems to be a ceiling with PSU. In a season that has seen Ohio State struggle on offense and Michigan have their head coach suspended for half of the regular season, the Nittany Lions could not break through. Is 10-2 the ceiling for Penn State for the foreseeable future? Is it good enough? Does that change with the 12-team playoff coming? These are all questions surrounding the Nittany Lions program.

Sense a theme? Penn State is an excellent football team but is not on the Ohio State and Michigan level. The Wolverines beat the Nittany Lions without their head coach and threw the ball eight times. They are clearly in the second tier of Big Ten teams.