Penn State leveraging Knowles to reevaluate Ohio State strategy

James Franklin has the opportunity to push Penn State football to new heights in 2025. Heading into his 12th season in Happy Valley, Franklin has the Nittany Lions on the verge of the program’s first preseason No. 1 ranking in over a quarter century. This fall could be Franklin’s best chance at winning Penn State’s first national title in nearly 40 years.

To reach those uncharted waters, Franklin must finally overcome the stumbling blocks that have long impeded the Nittany Lions’ path to the top. The Blue and White’s record against top-five competition since 2014 is well documented, posting a 1-15 mark over the last decade. The common denominator in many of those matchups has been Ohio State, with the Buckeyes delivering eight of those 15 losses since Franklin took the helm in State College.

But this year, Penn State has the benefit of perspective from behind enemy lines. With Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles now making his home in Happy Valley, the Nittany Lions are using his national championship-winning insight to reevaluate the program’s strategy against the Buckeyes.

Jim Knowles, Andy Kotelnicki and PSU’s staff recently went through an honest evaluation of PSU, Ohio State from last year, Kotelnicki said. pic.twitter.com/370fxRkEAp

— Audrey Snyder (@audsnyder4) June 5, 2025

Knowles pitched a near-perfect game against his new employer a year ago, keeping the Penn State offense out of the end zone and holding Drew Allar and the Nittany Lions to just 270 yards on the afternoon. Meanwhile, the Buckeyes put up 358 yards and escaped State College with the program’s 10th win against Franklin since 2014.

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“I feel like it’s the introduction of some change-ups to what they were doing in the past and an emphasis on communication,” Knowles said this week of the biggest impact he’s implemented since arriving at Penn State in January. “I think there’s been a lot more talking and a lot more identifying the offensive set. It all goes into eventually wanting the players to think like I think and see the same things that I see.”

While the behind-the-scenes work to crack the Buckeyes’ nut is put in now, we won’t see the potential fruits of that labor for nearly five months. Franklin and the Nittany Lions will attempt to achieve their elusive second win against Ohio State with a road trip to Columbus on November 1.

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