Recently posted on the premium board, but information taken from another site. The talent gap that has significantly hindered Penn State since the ridiculous sanctions has all but disappeared. If you are a believer in blue chip recruiting talent, PSU has surpassed Michigan and has narrowed the gap on Ohio State annually the past 5 years. It’s safe to say, we are approaching elite talent levels throughout the roster and should be set to compete with top tier programs on an annual basis now. Essentially this should allow us to reload, vs rebuild. We are really flying under the radar being ranked #14 to start the season and are poised to challenge for the Big Ten title this year IMO.
See below post/info from the Lions Den (not premium board exclusive info):
This is the 5th year that other site has done the team talent composite, and man does it make you optimistic as a PSU fan.
In 2015 we had 22 4 stars and zero 5 stars.
In 2019 we have 46 4* and 4 5*
In 2015 our overall national ranking was 22nd
In 2019 it's 10th
In 2015 our average player ranking was 85.40, which was 28th nationally.
In 2019 it's 89.80 which is 7th nationally
In 2015 our team score was 732.36 which was 120 points behind Michigan, and 170 behind Ohio St.
In 2019 the team score is 857.34 which is ahead of Michigan for the first time and 117 pts behind Ohio St.
These numbers are not the final word when it comes to measuring team performance, but they are a useful indicator. Can not wait for this season to get rolling.
Also of note, when you talk about blue chip players (4 and 5 star guys), Penn state is tied for fifth (50) nationally with Oklahoma. LSU is one ahead with 51, and osu (60), Georgia (59) and Alabama (69) are the only other teams ahead. Michigan has 40. Below is the rankings in that regard:
Alabama - 69
Ohio state - 60
Georgia - 59
LSU - 51
Penn state - 50
Oklahoma - 50
USC - 47
Notre Dame - 47
Texas - 46
Auburn - 46
Washington - 42
Texas A&M - 41
Auburn - 41
Michigan - 40
Clemson - 40
Florida - 39
Tennessee - 37
Oregon - 32
Miami - 32
Stanford - 29
S Car - 24
Miss st - 22
UCLA - 20
Nebraska - 20
Arkansas - 19
See below post/info from the Lions Den (not premium board exclusive info):
This is the 5th year that other site has done the team talent composite, and man does it make you optimistic as a PSU fan.
In 2015 we had 22 4 stars and zero 5 stars.
In 2019 we have 46 4* and 4 5*
In 2015 our overall national ranking was 22nd
In 2019 it's 10th
In 2015 our average player ranking was 85.40, which was 28th nationally.
In 2019 it's 89.80 which is 7th nationally
In 2015 our team score was 732.36 which was 120 points behind Michigan, and 170 behind Ohio St.
In 2019 the team score is 857.34 which is ahead of Michigan for the first time and 117 pts behind Ohio St.
These numbers are not the final word when it comes to measuring team performance, but they are a useful indicator. Can not wait for this season to get rolling.
Also of note, when you talk about blue chip players (4 and 5 star guys), Penn state is tied for fifth (50) nationally with Oklahoma. LSU is one ahead with 51, and osu (60), Georgia (59) and Alabama (69) are the only other teams ahead. Michigan has 40. Below is the rankings in that regard:
Alabama - 69
Ohio state - 60
Georgia - 59
LSU - 51
Penn state - 50
Oklahoma - 50
USC - 47
Notre Dame - 47
Texas - 46
Auburn - 46
Washington - 42
Texas A&M - 41
Auburn - 41
Michigan - 40
Clemson - 40
Florida - 39
Tennessee - 37
Oregon - 32
Miami - 32
Stanford - 29
S Car - 24
Miss st - 22
UCLA - 20
Nebraska - 20
Arkansas - 19
