In Happy Valley, the skies are blue, the roster is stacked, and the scent of destiny is thick in the air. Penn State enters the 2025 season not just with playoff hopes, but with a full-blown championship obsession. James Franklin is armed to the teeth—with a top-tier quarterback, a beefed-up receiver corps, and a defense that looks built to terrorize Saturdays. On paper, this is his best shot yet. But not everyone’s buying the hype.
In a twist straight out of a college football soap opera, Adam Breneman, a former All-American tight end who once bled blue and white under Franklin himself, has shaken the Nittany Lion faithful with a cold splash of reality. Instead of backing his alma mater for the national title, he’s placing his chips on the Texas Longhorns—a rising SEC juggernaut powered by a name that echoes through football royalty: Arch Manning.
Yes, you read that right. A Penn State icon just picked Texas to hoist the national championship trophy over the very team that molded him.
Texas Over Penn State? Say It Ain’t So, Adam
Breneman, now a rising analyst in the CFB media world, didn’t mince words in a recent preseason breakdown. He ranked Texas at No. 1 in his national title contenders list, placing Penn State at a respectable—but telling—No. 2. That’s ahead of blue bloods like Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Clemson. Yet it’s also a sign of doubt. Not just in the roster—but in Franklin himself.
“This Texas team is complete,” Breneman declared. “They’ve got Arch Manning, they’re explosive on both sides of the ball, and their defensive tackle rotation might be the best in the nation.”
And as if that wasn’t enough to make Nittany Lions fans wince, he added, “They remind me of Michigan in ’23 or Ohio State in ’24—better and loaded with unfinished business.”
Unfinished business? That phrase has become a haunting refrain in James Franklin’s tenure.
Franklin’s Redemption or Repeat?
Let’s not kid ourselves—Franklin’s 2025 roster is a monster. Quarterback Drew Allar is back for vengeance, boasting the kind of arm talent that gets NFL scouts drooling. His protection? An elite offensive line. His support? A backfield duo that could carry a team to Pasadena on their own. And the defense? With Jim Knowles orchestrating from the shadows, it may be the nastiest in the Big Ten.
But the Achilles’ heel that cracked Penn State’s title ambitions in 2024? The wide receiver room. A lifeless unit that lacked explosiveness, playmaking, and chemistry. It was the reason Allar couldn’t elevate when the lights were brightest.
This offseason, Franklin hit the portal like a man possessed. Syracuse’s Trebor Pena, Colorado State’s Devonte Ross, and USC’s Kyron Hudson bring over 2,400 yards of combined experience to the table. Add in homegrown talents like Liam Clifford and freshman phenom Tyseer Denmark, and suddenly the WR unit looks less like a liability—and more like a powder keg waiting to detonate.
“We have a lot of exciting youth in that room. That unit has taken a big step forward,” Franklin proudly declared after the spring game.
Still, for Breneman and many others, the big question looms large: Is it enough?
Franklin: Genius or Mirage?
Breneman hasn’t lost faith in Franklin entirely—in fact, he praised his old coach as one of the most underrated minds in college football. “Fans love to critique him,” Breneman admitted, “but he’s turned Penn State into a perennial power.”
And that’s true. Franklin’s résumé is impressive on the surface—one Big Ten title, six 10-win seasons, a Rose Bowl win, and a constant presence in national conversations. But peel back the layers and the numbers bite:
- 1–15 vs. Top 5 opponents.
- 3–20 vs. AP Top 10 teams.
- Three losses in 2024 to No. 1 Oregon, No. 4 Ohio State, and No. 5 Notre Dame.
This isn’t bad luck. This is a pattern. A disturbing, soul-shaking pattern.
Arch Manning’s Rise vs. Allar’s Redemption
The player Franklin once believed could be his ticket to a title, Drew Allar, now finds himself in a direct comparison with Texas’ golden boy, Arch Manning. Arch, with his last name dripping in legacy, has already carried Texas to back-to-back CFP semifinals. Meanwhile, Allar has the tools, but not yet the signature win.
In the modern era of CFB, legacies aren’t built on stats—they’re built on moments. Playoff wins. Game-winning drives. Fourth quarters under the lights in November. Right now, Arch has them. Allar doesn’t.
Two Paths Diverge: Will Franklin Finally Break Through—Or Break Down?
The 2025 season is shaping up to be James Franklin’s reckoning. He has the talent. He has the resources. He has the pressure. The margin for error is gone. With the expanded College Football Playoff, the excuses are shrinking. If not now… then when?
Adam Breneman’s prediction won’t be forgotten in State College. It’s more than a hot take—it’s a challenge. It’s a reflection of the national skepticism that Franklin must now obliterate if he wants to shed the “almost” label that’s followed him for a decade.
So here we are: Texas is riding with Arch. Penn State is riding with Allar. And James Franklin? He’s riding on the edge of greatness—or collapse.
Buckle up, folks.
