BREAKING: Penn State football climbs AP Poll after Illinois victory

After securing a gritty Big Ten win, the Penn State football team has learned its new AP Poll ranking. On a wild day in college football where some of the top programs in the country slipped, the Nittany Lions took care of business. It may not have been the prettiest win in recent memory but Penn State beat Illinois 21-7 Saturday night.

While some will judge a win based on how many points are scored or how my highlight plays are made. That’s not always the case in Big Ten football. Penn State football and Illinois had a slugfest on Saturday night but ultimately the Nittany Lion defense and the offensive line took over the game.

Around the country, we saw the No. 2 (Georgia), No. 6 (Ole Miss), and No. 10 (Utah) teams in the country all fall. Georgia lost to No. 4 Alabama in what some call the game of the year so far. Meanwhile, Ole Miss slipped against an unranked Kentucky team and Utah lost to an unranked Arizona team. On Sunday, the latest AP poll has been released where the Nittany Lions land this week?

1. 1. Alabama
   2. Texas
   3. Ohio State
   4. Tennessee
   5. Georgia
   6. Oregon
   7. Penn State
   8. Miami
   9. Missouri
   10. Michigan
   11. USC
   12. Ole Miss
   13. LSU
   14. Notre Dame
   15. Clemson
   16. Iowa State
   17. BYU
   18. Utah
   19. Oklahoma
   20. Kansas State
   21. Boise State
   22. Louisville
   23. Indiana
   24. Illinois
   25. UNLV

BREAKING: Week 6 College Football AP Poll🚨https://t.co/0NY37DqVfJ pic.twitter.com/7ojgiDjnNl

— On3 (@On3sports) September 29, 2024

Kicking woes for Penn State

Syndication: Hanover Evening Sun

The Nittany Lions got away with it on Saturday night due to the dominant defense. But there is a serious concern for Penn State with its kicking situation. Sander Sahaydak missed two separate field goal attempts on Saturday night against Illinois that would’ve put the game away much earlier than what we saw. ‘

Ryan Barker was on the field for the final extra point. Presumably, Sahaydak was benched for his performance, but it will be interesting to see where James Franklin goes from here at placekicker to fix the issue on special teams.

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