James Franklin’s start to the 2025 season was along expected lines. Nevada never stood a chance, and it became quite early. All the offensive pieces showed out, including Drew Allar and the Allen-Singleton duo. To top it off, Jim Knowles’ first game as the Lions’ DC also went without any major defensive hiccups. But Penn State isn’t judged based on what it does against unranked opponents. In fact, if you’re not named Michigan or Ohio State and you come up against Franklin in the regular season, there is an extremely high likelihood that you’re going to lose. Then how do you make sense of Penn State’s schedule? One analyst has an answer.

ESPN’s Desmond Howard appeared on the September 5 episode of USA Today Sports, and the Lions came up for discussion. “Just a lot of we need to see it

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