Penn State chasing 11 wins and Big Ten title, but Iowa could derail those dreams
Undefeated Penn State has a lot of high-risk work ahead to be James Franklin's best team yet and one of the best since joining the Big Ten.
The Nittany Lions have never won 11 regular season games under Franklin — a benchmark for winning a Big Ten title and being invited to the College Football Playoff.
They've won only four league titles since joining: 1994, 2005, 2008 and that unexpected 2016 surge under Franklin.
This team seems to be germinating special qualities that could carry it through a steep but well-placed climb in the Big Ten.
As the No. 4 Nittany Lions get ready for No. 3 Iowa, here are five reasons this team will win the title — and earn its first playoff bid.
Best cornerbacks, safeties in decades
Penn State has been known for its top-shelf defense in the Big Ten but never like this.
This team boasts its top secondary in decades — priceless in an age of fast-flying, spread-out, pass-first offenses.
Here's the other thing: These corners and safeties are not only superb at what they do, they play with a certain aggression and attitude that bleeds through the defense.
They are forcing turnovers (Ji'Ayir Brown, three interceptions) and delivering message-sending hits (Jaquan Brisker). They've shown elite coverage ability — necessary to finally match the firepower of Ohio State.
Think of past roughneck stars like Alan Zemaitis and safeties James Boyd and Shawn Mayer.
Finally, Penn State may have an entire group of them.
Rising power: Brandon Smith, Curtis Jacobs
The young linebackers have been more steady than anything.
Two of the better athletes in this league, though, have much higher ceilings. They're super-sized, fast and possess the pedigrees to be game-wreckers.
Their ability will take this defense to a new level — hopefully with just a bit more time and experience.
Smith is a second-year starter and just missed at making a handful of huge plays this season, like that potential pick-six vs. Auburn. He's 6-foot-3 and 240 pounds and has been compared to Micah Parsons, his former teammate now impressing with the Dallas Cowboys.
Jacobs is growing by the week as a first-time starter. He just hasn't seemed comfortable enough to let his speed and instincts take over.
But they're getting closer.
Watch for a noticeable shift coming out of the bye week.
Mike Yurcich, offensive genius
Penn State and James Franklin hired the best man available to run their offense.
So far, he's helped make senior quarterback Sean Clifford more efficient and has opened pathways for receivers Jahan Dotson and Parker Washington to morph into stars.
His offense is faster and more diversified and seems to grow by the week. It just looks more precise and confident.
Three standout tight ends are working into bigger roles. The offensive line, with three new starters, needs just a bit more continuity.
"Coach Yurcich, I said at the beginning of the season, he’s a master mind and I still believe that," said Dotson, now leading the Big Ten in receptions and receiving touchdowns.
"He has an answer for every single thing a defense throws at us."
Chip on shoulder from 2020
Most of these players lived through the worst start in Penn State history.
That 0-5 of last year, the first losing season since 2004.
They talk about how that drove them through the toughest off-season workouts in years.
Dotson, Brisker and cornerback Tariq Castro-Fields — the best at what they do in the Big Ten — returned to Penn State, in part, because they wanted to bring it back.
The confidence and fortitude earned from pulling out of such a situation is invaluable. The Lions seem to embrace beating back adversity.
Take the way Penn State's defense has performed with its back against its own end zone: stingy, defiant, nasty even. They've been the Big Ten's best at that.
A well-worked schedule
This may turn out to be Penn State's toughest lineup in forever, at least by rankings and numbers. But maybe it's the most well-placed, too.
The Lions gained immediate resolve with victories at Wisconsin and over the SEC's Auburn.
Even their breathers pushed them right: Ball State is the reigning Mid-American Conference champ; Villanova is one of the best in the FCS.
So they've received the proper runway for Saturday's trip to Kinnick Stadium — a rough venue that these Lions conquered just two years ago.
Then comes a well-placed bye before another road assault at No. 7 Ohio State. Surging Michigan, ranked No. 8, must come to Beaver Stadium. Surprising Michigan State, ranked 11th, will be hard-pressed to keep its feel-good run rolling by Thanksgiving.
There is an enviable pace to the schedule.
Which has got to mean something in the end.
Frank Bodani covers Penn State football for the York Daily Record and USA Today Network. Contact him at fbodani@ydr.com and follow him on Twitter @YDRPennState.