No. 2 Penn State kicks off a season with championship expectations. Heavy underdog Nevada is up first.
A season of high hopes in Happy Valley begins with a home matchup against the Wolf Pack, who finished 3-10 last season. Nittany Lions fans are hoping for another deep postseason run.
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Penn State has entered previous seasons under James Franklin with high expectations, but none have reached the level of this one. Fans expect a championship come January, and that run starts this weekend.
Penn State kicks off its season Saturday at Beaver Stadium against Nevada (3:30 p.m., CBS3).
The Nittany Lions enter Week 1 ranked No. 2 in the AP poll, just five points behind No. 1 Texas after receiving 23 first-place votes from the media panel. It’s Penn State’s highest preseason ranking since 1997.
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Penn State’s preseason standing naturally sparks questions, but sixth-year center Nick Dawkins isn’t worried about outside noise. He is confident the Nittany Lions have what it takes to make a deep postseason run.
“It’s no longer the idea of proving other people wrong,” he said. “It’s the idea of proving ourselves right. … We have the most cohesive group in the country. I will take that to the bank and run with it.”
Penn State’s offense, led by senior quarterback and Heisman Trophy candidate Drew Allar, is experienced. Franklin confirmed Wednesday that Anthony Donkoh will start at right guard and Nolan Rucci will start at right tackle, which means all 11 starters will enter Week 1 equipped with starting experience.
That group includes a veteran receiving corps of Syracuse transfer Trebor Peña, Southern Cal transfer Kyron Hudson, and Troy transfer Devonte Ross.
That trio will face an immediate test against a Wolf Pack secondary that ranked 36th against the pass in 2024, allowing just 198.6 passing yards per game. Nevada will have to try to replicate that success without All-Mountain West cornerback Michael Coats, who transferred to West Virginia in the offseason. The Wolf Pack finished 3-10 last season.
Saturday also marks the start of an important season for Allar, a possible first-round NFL draft pick who’s looking to avenge an ugly end to a standout 2024 season. The senior gunslinger’s last pass resulted in a season-deciding interception in Penn State’s 27-24 loss to Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff semifinals.
Franklin named redshirt freshman Ethan Grunkemeyer as Allar’s backup for Week 1 after he had a “more consistent camp” than Jaxon Smolik but said the battle will continue throughout the season.
Nevada will start sixth-year senior quarterback Chubba Purdy, the brother of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy. Chubba Purdy spent two seasons each at Florida State and Nebraska before transferring to Nevada ahead of the 2024 season, where he made one start in seven appearances.
The 24-year-old dual-threat quarterback can turn seemingly dead plays into positive yardage. Franklin mentioned Purdy as a point of emphasis for Penn State’s defense in preparation for the opener.
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Penn State returns its two-headed monster at running back with seniors Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen, who both posted 1,000-yard rushing seasons last year. Singleton said Allen looks stronger, faster, and more explosive entering 2025.
Nevada’s running back corps went the opposite direction this offseason and lost its top four rushers. The Wolf Pack replaced that production with Utah State transfer Herschel Turner, who rushed for 405 yards on 79 attempts with four touchdowns as a freshman in 2024.
Turner’s sophomore campaign kicks off against a new-look Penn State defensive line, led by senior defensive tackle Zane Durant. The preseason AP All-American started all 16 games for the Nittany Lions in 2024, tallying 42 tackles and three sacks.
Dawkins, who has blocked plenty of defensive linemen throughout his career, believes Durant is the best defensive tackle in college football and says his game has no flaws.
Sixth-year senior defensive end Zuriah Fisher, who missed the 2024 season with an injury, was absent from Wednesday’s open portion of practice. Franklin said Monday that Fisher is still “working through his injury.”
Nevada’s wide receivers veterans Marcus Bellon and Jordan Brown. Franklin mentioned Bellon, who tallied 39 catches for 522 yards and four touchdowns last season, as a player his staff has heard good things about.
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Penn State’s defense will be tasked with shutting those receivers down, and that starts with the signal-calling duo of linebackers Amare Campbell and Dominic DeLuca. Both will wear the green dot on Saturday.
DeLuca praised Campbell’s “high football IQ,” which will be displayed as he relays play calls from first-year defensive coordinator Jim Knowles.
An impressive coaching staff and veteran playmakers across the board have brought plenty of buzz to State College, but that didn’t stop DeLuca, a redshirt senior, from echoing Franklin’s “1-0” approach.
“We’re focused on Nevada, focusing on one week at a time,” DeLuca said.