The Rebuilding of a Legacy: Penn State Football

Whether you are a Penn State fan or not, someone in your family was probably watching the Rose Bowl parade or game at one point or another on January 2nd. The precision in the parade floats made out of flowers and the iconic history of the Rose Bowl can oftentimes end up leading one to forget about the actual Rose Bowl game. As exciting as these traditions from Pasadena, California are, Penn State football has been the absolute opposite as they have been flying under the radar all season long. If I was to ask a general sports fan from around this area, most would say that Penn State football isn’t great and definitely is not an elite program. While there is still room for improvement, my advice to all of these people is to hop on the bandwagon while you can. After seeing the program succeed in the fashion that it did this year, there is no reason to think that the playoffs are a stretch next season. With upcoming talents in the names of Nick Singleton and Drew Allar, the program is destined for success.

Heading into the 2022 season, Penn State was not playing at a high quality. In 2020, the program finished the season with a 4-5 record. In 2021, 7-6. While these records might be acceptable for many other colleges, Penn State has much higher standards than that. Heading into this past season, many Penn State fans were starting to lose hope as they entered the season as an unranked team. You would have to look hard to find a fan who thought we would make it anywhere near the Rose Bowl.

(inquirer.com)

As the season began back in September, Penn State did not make their fans feel any more excited for the season. After nearly being upset by an average team in Purdue, Penn State knew it had its work cut out. While there were bumps in the road, Penn State was, however, able to gather momentum moving into next season by an electric end of the season. Not only was Penn State crowned the 2023 Rose Bowl Champion, but they also finished the season with an impressive 11-2 record. This record pushed them to be ranked seventh in the country in the current AP Poll. Looking back at the season, the only two losses came to Michigan and Ohio State. As much as both of those losses stung, both of these teams went on to the playoffs. Focusing on the positives, Penn State did win their last five games by an average margin of 27.8 points. Some of their most impressive wins of the season were against Utah, Auburn, and Maryland, none of which were close games. Here are the complete results from the 2022 season.

September 1, 2022 @ Purdue: 35-31 Win

September 10, 2022 vs. Ohio: 46-10 Win

September 17, 2022 @ Auburn: 41-12 Win

September 24, 2022 vs. Central Michigan: 33-14 Win

October 1, 2022 vs. Northwestern: 17-7 Win

October 15, 2022 @ Michigan: 17-41 Loss

October 22, 2022 vs. Minnesota: 45-17 Win

October 29, 2022 vs. Ohio State: 31-44 Loss

November 5, 2022 @ Indiana: 45-14 Win

November 12, 2022 vs. Maryland: 30-0 Win

November 19, 2022 @ Rutgers: 55-10 Win

November 26, 2022 vs. Michigan State: 35-16 Win

January 2, 2023 vs. Utah (Rose Bowl): 35-21 Win

Leading the team this year was sixth-year Senior, quarterback Sean Clifford. While he had his moments with angry Penn State fans once he announced that he was coming back for a sixth year, he ended up making Penn State history this season. Sean joined Trace McSorley as the only two Penn State quarterbacks responsible for at least 100 touchdown passes. Within these numbers, Sean played the game of his life in the Rose Bowl as he completed 16-21 passes for 279 yards. Not only this but running back Nick Singleton set the freshman rushing touchdown record with 12. As a team, Penn State also led the nation in pass breakups. Looking forward to next season, current freshman quarterback Drew Allar will be looking to make a larger impact next year as he was the number 1 quarterback recruit in the country in his class.

(yorkdispatch.com)

Not only was the team successful on the field this past season, but the fans showed up as well. Coming in at the fifth-best average in program history, Penn State averaged 107,379 fans per home game. The largest attendance was, obviously, the Whiteout. There were 109,813 people at that game!

With all of this information, there is no reason to not be ecstatic about Penn State’s potential heading into next season. With the likes of up-and-coming players, the fans should have a lot to cheer about. While this past season ended up being very successful, there is still a lot more to achieve. With that in mind, Penn State has a ton of momentum and confidence moving into next season after a decisive Rose Bowl victory. If you are a Penn State fan, I’m sure you are getting sick and tired of hearing about how the next season will be the year that they make the playoffs. After many years of these talks, it is yet to happen. Maybe with some 2023 magic, Penn State will break through the barrier and sneak into the playoffs! I certainly hope so!