Penn State ultimately gave James Franklin everything he had been asking for.

In just one offseason:

The school bankrolled the hiring the nation's highest-paid assistant coach, $3 million defensive coordinator Jim Knowles.

PSU's supporters stepped up in big ways in the NIL department to keep talented players like quarterback Drew Allar , running back Nicholas Singleton and defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton for one more year rather than go on to the NFL .

In the spring the Nittany Lions added Syracuse receiver Trebor Pena , one of the pricier receiver options in the portal, to ameliorate what's been a disappointing receivers corp for years.

It was all set up for this to be Penn State's "Last Dance" title run. Michigan and Ohio State provided the blueprint the last tw

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