Penn State football just outside of top 5 in College Football Playoff odds for 2023

Penn State football is facing high expectations in 2023 after going 11-2 and winning the Rose Bowl last fall. Today, new 2023-24 College Football Playoff odds were unveiled, and the Nittany Lions cracked the top 10 nationally. However, James Franklin and company came in at No. 3 among Big Ten programs.

Penn State football facing high expectations this year

Few teams have the same level of expectations as Penn State football does right now, which is funny considering where the program was 12 months ago.

Not much was expected of the Nittany Lions in 2022 — the season before, despite a 5-0 start, Penn State fell to 7-6 overall and finished the year unranked after suffering a 14-point loss in the Outback Bowl. The odds seemed stacked against the Lions last fall, yet James Franklin and Sean Clifford regrouped to finish 11-2 overall and ranked in the top 10, securing a major postseason win for the fourth time in the past six full seasons.

Penn State is the first on the board in the Rose Bowl! Singleton takes it to the endzone. Penn State: 7 Utah:0. pic.twitter.com/KJkXoqUBT9

— Penn State Nittany Lions (@PennStateRivals) January 2, 2023

This year, the Nittany Lions have a fresh face at quarterback in former five-star Drew Allar, who is expected to elevate the program to the next level. Additionally, Penn State has a third-year offensive play-caller, a second-year defensive play-caller, and a healthy mix of youth and experience.

Nittany Lions have top 6 odds to make College Football Playoff in 2023-24 season

Today, new College Football Playoff odds were released for the 2023-24 season, and Penn State football landed among the nation’s top 10, coming in at No. 6. According to DraftKings, Penn State has +280 odds to make their first-ever appearance in the playoff this fall, tied with LSU and Florida State for the sixth-best odds in the nation.

Although just outside of the top 5 nationally, Penn State football still trails Ohio State (-125) and Michigan (-105) among Big Ten East programs. Once again, it is clear that the Big Ten East is arguably the best division in all of college football right now, with three programs expected to be national championship-caliber competitors in the coming season.

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