CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2024 Penn State

13–⁠3 (8–⁠1 Big Ten), coached by James Franklin, finished No. 5 in the AP poll.

Schedule and results

Penn State in 2024, game by game: won at West Virginia 34–12; won vs. Bowling Green 34–27; won vs. Kent State 56–0; won vs. No. 19 Illinois 21–7; won vs. UCLA 27–11; won at USC 33–30; won at Wisconsin 28–13; lost vs. No. 4 Ohio State 13–20; won vs. Washington 35–6; won at Purdue 49–10; won at Minnesota 26–25; won vs. Maryland 44–7; lost vs. No. 1 Oregon 37–45; won vs. No. 12 SMU 38–10; won vs. No. 8 Boise State 31–14; lost vs. No. 3 Notre Dame 24–27+56−8Won 34–12 at West Virginia+22West VirginiaWon 34–27 vs. Bowling Green+7Bowling GreenWon 56–0 vs. Kent State+56Kent StateWon 21–7 vs. No. 19 Illinois+14No. 19 IllinoisWon 27–11 vs. UCLA+16UCLAWon 33–30 at USC+3USCWon 28–13 at Wisconsin+15WisconsinLost 13–20 vs. No. 4 Ohio State-7No. 4 Ohio StateWon 35–6 vs. Washington+29WashingtonWon 49–10 at Purdue+39PurdueWon 26–25 at Minnesota+1MinnesotaWon 44–7 vs. Maryland+37MarylandLost 37–45 vs. No. 1 Oregon-8No. 1 OregonWon 38–10 vs. No. 12 SMU+28No. 12 SMUWon 31–14 vs. No. 8 Boise State+17No. 8 Boise StateLost 24–27 vs. No. 3 Notre Dame-3No. 3 Notre Dame
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 31atWest VirginiaW 34–⁠1251%
Sep 7vsBowling GreenW 34–⁠2778%
Sep 21vsKent StateW 56–⁠093%
Sep 28vs19IllinoisW 21–⁠774%
Oct 5vsUCLAW 27–⁠1182%
Oct 12atUSCW 33–⁠3058%
Oct 26atWisconsinW 28–⁠1358%
Nov 2vs4Ohio StateL 13–⁠2057%
Nov 9vsWashingtonW 35–⁠667%
Nov 16atPurdueW 49–⁠1086%
Nov 23atMinnesotaW 26–⁠2567%
Nov 30vsMarylandW 44–⁠789%
Dec 7vs1OregonBig Ten ChampionshipL 37–⁠4539%
Dec 21Bowls & playoffvs12SMUCFP First RoundW 38–⁠1061%
Dec 31Bowls & playoffvs8Boise StateFiesta Bowl, CFP QuarterfinalW 31–⁠1455%
Jan 9Bowls & playoffvs3Notre DameOrange Bowl, CFP SemifinalL 24–⁠2742%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Notre Dame 27–⁠24 in the Orange Bowl, CFP Semifinal; No. 5 in the final AP poll; tied for 2nd in the Big Ten.

In program history: The 10th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 139 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 1: 8
  2. Wk 2: 8
  3. Wk 3: 8
  4. Wk 4: 10
  5. Wk 5: 9
  6. Wk 6: 7
  7. Wk 7: 4
  8. Wk 8: 3
  9. Wk 9: 3
  10. Wk 10: 3
  11. Wk 11: 6
  12. Wk 12: 4
  13. Wk 13: 4
  14. Wk 14: 4
  15. Wk 15: 3
  16. Wk 16: 5
  17. Final: 5

John Mackey AwardTyler Warren, TE

Wuerffel TrophyNick Dawkins, C

Consensus All-AmericanAbdul Carter, DL

Record
13–⁠3
Conference
8–⁠1 tied for 2nd in Big Ten
AP final
No. 5 peak No. 3
Points
530–⁠264
Coach
James Franklin
Elo
1780 +140 this season
SP+ rating
24.6 No. 5 of 134; offense No. 9, defense No. 4, special teams No. 63
SRS
19.3 No. 4 of 134 in FBS
Returning
74% of last season’s EPA, No. 19 of 133
Recruiting class
No. 15 roster talent No. 11 in FBS
Offensive coordinators
Andy Kotelnicki, Ja’Juan Seider and Ty Howle
Defensive coordinators
Tom Allen and Anthony Poindexter
Captains
Drew Allar, Nick Dawkins, Dominic DeLuca, Kobe King, Riley Thompson and Kevin Winston Jr.
Offense
Pro spread
Defense
4–⁠2–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense8th of 134
  • Defense12th of 134
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted7th of 134
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted5th of 134
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.2650%1.218th of 134
Defense-0.0138%1.2312th of 134
Opponent-adjusted0.25 off
-0.03 def		51% off
36% def		—7th off
5th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense4.7own 2910% allowed
Defense3.2own 2719% caused

CORE rating 27.1, 4th of 134 (offense 14.5, defense -12.7).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsDrew Allar QB3,327 yds
Passing touchdownsDrew Allar QB24 TD
Rushing yardsKaytron Allen RB1,108 yds
Rushing touchdownsNicholas Singleton RB12 TD
Receiving yardsTyler Warren TE1,233 yds
Receiving touchdownsTyler Warren TE8 TD
TacklesJaylen Reed S95 tkl
SacksAbdul Carter DE12 sacks
InterceptionsDominic DeLuca LB3 INT

Top recruits in the 2024 class

Cooper Cousins OL★★★★No. 57
Luke Reynolds TE★★★★No. 71
Quinton Martin Jr. RB★★★★No. 89
Ethan Grunkemeyer QB★★★★No. 105
Liam Andrews DL★★★★No. 125
Jon Mitchell CB★★★★No. 128
Garrett Sexton OT★★★★No. 210
Mylachi Williams DE★★★★No. 281

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2024 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks14.00.951
Running backs24.00.927
Receivers43.50.907
Offensive line43.80.919
Defensive line73.60.897
Linebackers23.50.888
Defensive backs53.60.901
Athletes and specialists13.00.883
Whole class263.60.906

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2025

The 2025 draft
Rd 1Abdul Carter DENew York Giants
Rd 1Tyler Warren TEIndianapolis Colts
Rd 3Kevin Winston Jr. STennessee Titans
Rd 6Jaylen Reed SHouston Texans
Rd 6Kobe King LBMinnesota Vikings

Roster 125

The 2024 roster

125 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2024 line; 67 have a stat line. See the roster

Transfers in 6

The 2024 portal
A.J. Harris CB★★★★from Georgia
Julian Fleming WR★★★★from Ohio State
Nolan Rucci OT★★★from Wisconsin
Jalen Kimber CB★★★from Florida
Jordan Mayer DE★★★from Wisconsin
Chase Meyer Kfrom Tulsa

Transfers out 13

Keandre Lambert WR★★★★to Auburn
King Mack S★★★★to Alabama
Dante Cephas WR★★★to Kansas State
Cristian Driver WR★★★to Minnesota
Jordan van den Berg DL★★★to Georgia Tech
London Montgomery RB★★★to East Carolina
Malik McClain WR★★★to Arizona State
Davon Townley Jr. DL★★★to Missouri State
Alex Bacchetta P★★★to Rice
Golden Israel-Achumba OL★★★no new school on file
Ibrahim Traore OT★★★no new school on file
Malick Meiga WR★★★to Coastal Carolina

And 1 more, lower-rated or unrated.

All-Big Ten

2 first team, 3 second team

First team

Second team

From Wikipedia’s 2024 all-conference team article, with the selectors that named each player (AP-1: the Associated Press’s first team).

2024 Big Ten standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Oregon9–⁠013–⁠13
Indiana8–⁠111–⁠210
Penn State8–⁠113–⁠35
Ohio State7–⁠214–⁠21
Illinois6–⁠310–⁠316
Iowa6–⁠38–⁠5
Michigan5–⁠48–⁠5
Minnesota5–⁠48–⁠5
USC4–⁠57–⁠6
Rutgers4–⁠57–⁠6
Washington4–⁠56–⁠7
Nebraska3–⁠67–⁠6
Michigan State3–⁠65–⁠7
Wisconsin3–⁠65–⁠7
UCLA3–⁠65–⁠7
Northwestern2–⁠74–⁠8
Maryland1–⁠84–⁠8
Purdue0–⁠91–⁠11

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.