#10-PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS

Two years after the Sandusky scandal, the NCAA and self-imposed sanctions will finally have a major impact on the Penn State Football program. James Franklin takes over for the departed Bill O’Brien and faces a difficult task in the short term. We love the Franklin hire and fully expect him to restore the program to past heights but acknowledge this will be at least a three year process.

Christian Hackenberg returns for his sophomore season after an impressive rookie campaign. One must wonder however, how much of his success was due to O’Brien and his innovative offense. Don’t be surprised to see Hackenberg taking a step back this fall before becoming the high end quarterback many expect him to be. Zach Kwinak and Bill Belton form a solid due in the backfield behind Hackenberg however the receiving corps is young and inexperienced. Odds are a few of the stud 2014 WRs from Penn State’s recruiting class see the field early in September. The Nittany Lions front 7 on defense looks very impressive and stopping the run should be a strength from the beginning. The secondary is where it’ll be decided if Penn State has a good or very good defense as corners Jordan Lucas and Trevor Williams look to build upon a questionable 2013 season.

Penn State’s non-conference schedule is as weak as any we can recall, facing UCF, Akron, UMASS and Temple all in Happy Valley. The conference schedule is less forgiving however as they’ll face Northwestern, Michigan and Ohio State from late September through early October. A couple of toss-up games prelude a visit from Michigan State to close out the regular season.

PREDICTION: 3-5 IN THE BIG TEN, 7-5 OVERALL.