ALTOONA, Pa. -- Big Ten media days get under way Tuesday in Indianapolis, and we'll hear a whole bunch of news and notes from around the league. Penn State's contingent of James Franklin, Sean Clifford, Ji'Ayir Brown and PJ Mustipher will meet the media Wednesday, and fall camp will start next week.
So, this is as good of a time as any to make some season predictions for the Nittany Lions and the Big Ten. I've got a slew of different ones here, and if there's anything I didn't include that you'd like addressed, mention it in the comments.
Here we go ...
Lions' season record: I'm going 7-5. Last year's team was 7-5 during the regular season, and I don't think this year's team is any better, given all the losses on defense and standout receiver Jahan Dotson.
They'll be better if: The offensive line and running game make HUGE strides. Penn State cannot possibly be any worse in these areas than last year, but a marginal improvement won't be enough. The running game simply has to be able to balance the offense and pick up key yardage in all sorts of situations.
They'll be worse if: Clifford struggles and/or gets benched. Look, we all know Clifford is an average college quarterback. But believe it or not, he still gives the team its best chance to win compared to Christian Veilleux or Drew Allar. We all want to see what the youngsters can do for the future, but be careful what you wish for when you're talking about THIS season, because Clifford must play well to win seven or eight games.
Best offensive player: Parker Washington. Looking forward to seeing how he performs as the No. 1 receiver now that Dotson is gone.
Best running back: Not a whole lot of folks are sold on Keyvone Lee, but I'll take a flyer and say him for this year. Nick Singleton is a true freshman and will be running behind what probably will be an average offensive line at best, so it's going to take time for him to adjust to college. Lee has played a lot, and while he's not a star, I think he'll be the best of this group.
Most important offensive newcomer: That would be receiver Mitchell Tinsley, who starred in Western Kentucky's pass-happy system last year (87 catches, 14 TDs, 1.402 yards). Was he really that good, or was it all just a product of the system? Well, Penn State will need him to be really good, to either take pressure off Washington or, perhaps, even to emerge as the No. 1 receiver himself.
Offensive lineman to watch: Everybody wants to see how Landon Tengwall does. But my two picks here are left tackle Olu Fashanu and center Juice Scruggs. They both play very important positions and will need to play well.
Projected O-line starters: LT Fashanu, LG Tengwall, C Scruggs, RG Hunter Nourzad (transfer from Cornell), RT Caedan Wallace.
Best tight end: Theo Johnson or Brenton Strange? Tough call. I think Johnson has a little bit more upside.
On the hot seat: Offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich came to Penn State with a whole bunch of hype. But his performance was, quite frankly, lousy last year. If he turns in another similar season, he will be fired. Or maybe not. Yurcich has a strong relationship with Allar, so Franklin may have to keep Yurcich around no matter what rather than risk angering/losing Allar. Can Yurcich improve? Absolutely. He has a proven track record. But he cannot have the running game be an embarrassment again as it was last year.
Best defensive player: Tackle PJ Mustipher, a proven and legitimate run stopper.
Best linebacker: Curtis Jacobs. Not a star, but solid. Overall depth at linebacker is a concern.
Best defensive back: Joey Porter Jr. is immensely talented and should be the best, but he has to play much better than he did last season. So, I'll go with Brown here. He just makes plays and is always around the ball, picking off six passes last year.
Most important defensive newcomer: Maryland transfer defensive end Chop Robinson could be another Arnold Ebiketie when it comes to impacting games.
Defensive lineman to watch: End Adisa Isaac sat out last season with an Achilles injury but has a chance to be great. And end Nick Tarburton should be a disruptive factor.
How will Manny Diaz do: This will be very interesting to watch. Diaz likes to play aggressively on defense, which means taking more chances. Franklin doesn't like to take chances on defense, but rather prefers the bend but don't break style and then shutting things down in the red zone. If Diaz's aggressive style works and produces lots of turnovers, then great, the defense will excel. But if the defense starts getting burned for explosive plays and long touchdowns, I can see Franklin stepping in and forcing Diaz to back off somewhat from the aggression aspect.
What about the kicking game? Losing Jordan Stout to the NFL is a big blow on punting and kickoffs. He was a game changer. Jake Pinegar should be the place-kicker and will need to be consistent. The punter job is up for grabs.
Will Franklin improve as a game coach? Yes. Now, I know, I know, a lot of people will disagree on this and say Franklin's game-day coaching will always be an issue. And now that he has a 10-year contract, there may not seem to be much incentive for him to prove he is getting better with game calls. But I'm going to give Franklin the benefit of the doubt here and theorize that he did a lot of soul searching over the offseason about ways that HE must improve after going 4-5 and 7-6 the last two years. We'll see.
Big Ten champion: Ohio State
College Football Playoff berth: Ohio State
National champion: Alabama
Heisman Trophy winner: Buckeyes QB C.J. Stroud. I'm picking him because I don't think voters will give it to Alabama's Bryce Young two years in a row. So, looking for the next-best candidate, I see the Buckeyes going undefeated and Stroud being the obvious choice for the award because you know he's going to put up great numbers.
Big Ten East predicted order of finish: 1. Ohio State; 2. Michigan; 3. Michigan State; 4. Penn State; 5. Maryland; 6. Indiana; 7. Rutgers.
Big Ten West predicted order of finish: Things could get crazy on this side, since there likely won't be any great teams. 1. Wisconsin; 2. Iowa; 3. Minnesota; 4. Purdue; 5. Nebraska; 6. Northwestern; 7. Illinois.
