Nick Singleton is ranked a top 3 running back in CFB

I have good news and bad news for Penn State football fans. The bad news: we are still more than a month away from the Nittany Lions’ Blue-White game, which will be the team’s first time in Beaver Stadium since November 26th of last year. The good news: Penn State is loaded across the board, and the nation is taking notice. On Wednesday, Penn State rising sophomore Nick Singleton was ranked a top 3 running back in college football by On3.

The Top 10 College Football Running Backs heading into the 2023 season?https://t.co/O7f2PIEJ17 pic.twitter.com/RnTn3kZu9D

— On3 (@On3sports) February 22, 2023

Nick Singleton is a top 3 running back

This time last year, Penn State fans were not sure what to expect from true freshman Nick Singleton — the Lions were coming off of a disappointing 11-11 stretch from 2020-21, which included a horrific 2-6 finish after a 5-0 start in 2021. The O-line was abysmal, and PSU had questions all over the board. In Week 1, many people’s suspicions appeared to be confirmed as the Nittany Lions squeaked past Purdue, 35-31, at Ross-Ade Stadium in Indiana.

Still, in Week 2, we saw the former No. 1 player in PA come into his own as carry the Lions to an impressive victory over the MAC East Champion Ohio Bobcats. The Ohio game, which saw Singleton carry the ball 10 times for 179 yards and two touchdowns, was the first of many impressive performances a season ago.

All said and done, as a freshman, Nick Singleton carried the ball 156 times for 1,061 yards and 12 touchdowns — he became the first running back since Keyvone Lee (2020) to break 100 yards in a game, and the first back since Mile Sanders (2018) to rush for over 1,000 yards in a single season. Now, after carrying Penn State’s offense to an 11-2 season — which concluded with a Rose Bowl win over No. 8 Utah — and a top-10 finish, Singleton is aspiring for more this year.

Expectations are sky high for Singleton and the Nittany Lions

A season ago, the expectation for Penn State football was another 7-8 win season; however, after shattering those expectations with an impressive 11-2 season, those expectations have changed. 10-win seasons and New Year’s Six games are great, but the fans and media want more than that from James Franklin and Co. — they want what Penn State has been on the cusp of for years now.

This season will be the Nittany Lions’ best shot since 2017 at a Big Ten title and College Football Playoff berth; now, it’s time for the Lions and their top 3 running back to deliver.

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