The expectations for Penn State were all over the place coming into this season, but they are clearly defined now. It feels like the program controls its own destiny now that it continues to move up in the weekly polls and are consistently overwhelming opponents.
Of course, we haven’t seen the Nittany Lions against Big Ten competition yet, but luckily conference play begins this weekend. The game against Wisconsin on Saturday should give everyone a clear picture of what this team truly is and how effective they’ll be against their toughest competition this season.
For what it’s worth, even the national media is starting to believe this team is a College Football Playoff contender. The majority of outlets predicted before the season that the Nittany Lions would be playing in a Bowl Game at the end of the year, but they’re finally starting to change their tune.
Here are a few major publications, and where they are projecting Penn State at the end of the season now that the team has improved to 3-0.
USA TODAY
Bowl Game: College Football Playoff First Round
Opponent: BYU
CBS Sports
Bowl Game: College Football Playoff First Round
Opponent: Ole Miss
ESPN
Bowl Game: College Football Playoff First Round
Opponent: Ole Miss, Miami
Two people wrote ESPN’s article — Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach, so there are two opponents listed.
On3 Sports
Bowl Game: Citrus Bowl
Opponent: LSU
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This article originally appeared on Nittany Lions Wire: Penn State receives optimistic Bowl Game projections after Week 3
