Penn State joins brutal company in latest upset loss; Lions' disaster cannot be overcome, and more of what they're saying

STATE COLLEGE — Penn State is being skewered across the Internet after a 22-21 loss to Northwestern that drops the Lions to 3-3 on the year. As FOX Sports’ Chris Fallica notes, they are the first team ever to lose consecutive games in which they were a 20-plus point favorite. And, they are just the third team to ever do it twice in a single season. They join 1996 Nebraska and 1997 Texas Tech.

“First of all, you have to give Northwestern and Coach [David] Braun a ton of credit,” Lions coach James Franklin said. “We shouldn’t lose that game. It’s 100% on me. And, we have to get it fixed. And, I will get it fixed.”

Here’s a look at what else is being said about Penn State after its latest loss.

James Franklin cannot overcome this 2025 season

Much of what is out there is going in the direction of Franklin. His teams have never reached this low during his 15-year head coaching career.

“There’s nothing he can do to redefine this season; it’s a disaster and that’s the final word,” Joe Rexrode writes for The Athletic. “All he can do is work, as he said, and try to get some positive results while examining the exit possibilities that will absolutely be coming his way. All Penn State fans can do is hope that this is it; that Franklin, over time, is remembered as their version of Mark Richt; and that their version of Kirby Smart is next.”

Read the full story here.

Adds Bob Flounders for PennLive:

“Franklin has to go. The buyout is substantial, but the head coach has lost the Penn State room. His players were pushed around by teams with inferior talent the last two Saturdays. And highly-paid coordinators Andy Kotelnicki and Jim Knowles have not made any noteworthy adjustments.”

Read the full story here.

Drew Allar’s career ends in State College

The headline of BWI’s Nate Bauer’s column on the end of an era at quarterback for Penn State says it all. It reads as follows: Drew Allar Penn State career ends with promise fulfilled, unfinished.

“Now sidelined for the rest of the season – his playing career as a Nittany Lion effectively over barring an NCAA exception – Allar’s future is clouded by once-unthinkable uncertainty,” Bauer writes.

“A player who aspired to lift Penn State to new heights, Drew Allar’s season – and career – will instead go unfulfilled.”

Read the full story here.

Has Penn State hit rock bottom?

That’s what Joel Haas writes for Statecollege.com. The Lions are at what is unquestionably the lowest point of the James Franklin era.

“This was supposed to be the year,” he writes. “Franklin even referenced the outside hype and called it his “best combined personnel,” only to produce two of the most embarrassing losses in program history.

College football fans don’t need success. They need to believe that they can be successful throughout the season and into future seasons. They need reasons for optimism. Right now, there are none. And when all hope is lost, well… Welcome to rock bottom.”

Read the full story here.

Final word

This week, it goes to USA Today’s Matthew Glenesk. He has the Lions at the top of his weekly ‘Flop 10.’

“Three weeks ago, Penn State was No. 2 in the country. Life comes at you fast,” he writes. “The Nittany Lions have lost three in a row and the vultures are circling. Losing in double-OT to a top-5 team, while disappointing, is tolerable. But back-to-back losses to previously winless UCLA and at home to Northwestern will test the resolve of those needed to sign off on James Franklin’s near-$50 million buyout.

“Penn State trailed Northwestern, 22-21, prior to Drew Allar suffering a season-ending injury. Add injury to insult. It doesn’t get any easier for the Nittany Lions, who are 0-3 in the Big Ten. They travel to Iowa, then face No. 1 Ohio State followed by Indiana, who may be ranked No. 3 come Sunday. From preseason expectations to the harsh reality of what may lay ahead, this Penn State team could go down as one of the most disappointing of the 2000s.”

Read the full story here.