Joel Klatt addresses Penn State's ranking in Way-Too-Early Top-10

Joel Klatt is going with a program with the successful blueprint laid out for them as his top team going into next season.

Klatt explained having Penn State at No. 1 in his Way-Too-Early Top-10 during his show after the end of this past season. He looks at the Nittany Lions, who have already done well the past three seasons, and thinks they can be even better this fall with much of their core returning for one more run in University Park.

“This is going to be the number one team for the reason that I described before even saying who the team is,” Klatt said. “There is a clear blueprint in college football that has been now established over the last two years. Everything runs in cycles and, right now, the cycle is about veteran, experienced players. You got to have ’em and it’s even more valuable when they come from your own program. When you can bring guys back to your program, and they know the drill and they know the culture and the culture of the team rests in those core players, you’ve got something special. That’s exactly what happened with Michigan two years ago when they won the national championship…The same thing happened with Ohio State…Something similar to that is happening right now in State College.”

“Penn State has gotten better every single year for the past three or four years…They are knocking on the door of a national championship and now they’re bringing all of those key pieces back to their team,” said Klatt. “Culture, togetherness, chemistry – whatever you want to call it and however you want to define it. It has to be held with guys that committed there…That’s where your culture has to be held and that’s what Penn State is going to have.”

Among those names back at Penn State are ones like QB Drew Allar, RBs Kaytron Allen and Nick Singleton, DE Dani Dennis-Sutton, and DB Zakee Wheatley. They don’t make this a team that is by far the best in the sport but it is one that has the roots of what they’ve been doing as of late as a program, especially on offense.

“You start getting those announcements and I immediately thought to myself there’s your blueprint,” said Klatt. “Now, are they head and shoulders the best roster in college football, like maybe Ohio State was in the offseason last year? No. Not quite. And I do think this is going to be a grind because you can talk me into Penn State at six.”

“I think Penn State, in my Way-Too-Early, is going to be number one for the following reasons,” Klatt said. “Drew Allar has started 29 games now so he’s going to be one of the more experienced quarterbacks in college football. Singleton and Allen have started together since their freshman year. They’re now going to be in their fourth year. Four of five starters on the offensive line are back and they have depth. So they will be able to run the football to death. Year two with Andy Kotelnicki? Everything that he learned his first year as offensive coordinator for Penn State and operating with those specific players is going to pay dividends moving forward.”

As for issues, Klatt did note their receiving corps as well as a defense that did lose some pieces from another top-ten unit – although the hire of DC Jim Knowles has since taken some of that away.

He also needs to finally see them break through against the teams who are their match on a level playing field.

“They still have to prove one thing to me and they didn’t get a chance to prove that this year. Even in a run to the national semifinal, they never beat a team that they were even with,” said Klatt. “That was their big chance against Notre Dame and they didn’t do it. They’ve got to get over that hump. That’s going to be the tipping point for James Franklin and Penn State is getting over that hump of beating someone that they maybe ‘shouldn’t’ or that they’re on equal footing with. If they do that then watch out.”

Klatt saw the outline for success from the past two national champions who were both from out of the Big Ten. Now, another has a similar build for this next season with that being why Penn State is No. 1 for him going into kickoff in ’25.

“I like a lot of things about the Nittany Lions,” said Klatt. “For those reasons, the Nittany Lions are going to be my number one team in my Way-Too-Early Top-10 for 2025.”