Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1410640
4 0 O C T O B E R 2 0 2 1 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M Ten championship, the Lions went 29- 21. During the four seasons leading into the current campaign, they went 35-13 with three New Year's Six bowl appear- ances and two victories in those games. That record makes it a lot easier to re- cruit at a championship level, which is evidenced by the team's performance throughout the 2022 recruiting cycle. As of Sept. 14, Penn State was ranked second nationally in the Rivals team rankings. But if the Nittany Lions are in a far dif- ferent place as a program than they were five years ago, so too is the Big Ten, and so is college football in general. The balance of power in the confer- ence has shifted to the point that long- time stragglers like Indiana, Maryland and Minnesota are dangerous enough to put a damper on even the most promis- ing PSU seasons. The Golden Gophers did just that in 2019, defeating the Lions 31-26 in a late-season battle of unbeat- ens, while the Hoosiers (36-35) and Ter- rapins (35-19) followed suit last year. It's impossible to predict how far this trend will go, but considering that Rut- gers spent much of the spring and sum- mer residing in the top 10 of the Rivals team recruiting rankings for the class of 2022, it's not unreasonable to think that the Big Ten is going to be a more egalitar- ian place in the years to come. Maybe not for four-time defending champion Ohio State, but perhaps for everybody else. A New Alliance The Big Ten's future schedules are also going to look different thanks to a newly formed alliance with the Pac-12 and ACC. The partnership between the three Power Five conferences was an- nounced Aug. 24 with more fanfare than specificity, but one component that is sure to impact the Nittany Lions going forward is a plan to stage intersectional games that will presumably boost the leagues' TV revenues. As one of the Big Ten's marquee programs, Penn State is certain to figure prominently in what- ever plan the alliance implements to maximize its viewership. The formation of the alliance was seen as a way for the three leagues to battle the SEC, which has won 11 of the past 15 national championships and is looking stronger than ever with the impending addition of Texas and Oklahoma. Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren, citing a summer of upheaval that included the SEC's coup, said that college sports are "at an inflection point." "These are the kind of issues that we all will be dealing with here this year and for many years in the future," he said. There remain many unknowns regard- ing the integration of the Longhorns and Sooners into the SEC, including just when they will begin competition in their new league. The uncertainty around those details and how the rest of the college sports world will reorient itself helps explain why Penn State ath- letics director Sandy Barbour demurred in August when asked about the poten- tial ripple effects. Said Barbour, "I don't know that you've seen much ripple yet." Franklin was even more reluctant than his boss in the days following the announcement to assess the ramifica- tions. "I'm going to stay away from that one right now," he said. "I knew it was com- ing from my conversations with Sandy, but I don't want to sit here and make a statement when we haven't talked about it as Big Ten coaches and haven't had a conversation with the Big Ten ADs and the commissioner." Those conversations will take place in the weeks and months ahead. In the meantime, while there may not be many specifics, the broad contours of college football's new world are starting to take shape. Barbour said that the latest wave of conference realignment "is different from some of the other expansion pe- riods that we've experienced." She was referring to the imperative that all of Trace McSorley enjoyed one of the best nights of his career in Penn State's victory over the Badgers in the 2016 league title game, completing 22 of 31 passes for 384 yards. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL