When Penn State fired James Franklin in mid-November after a third straight loss dropped them to 3-3, it was somewhat surprising. However, less than a year after a trip to the college Football Playoff semifinal, Nittany Lions fans had enough. So did athletic director Pat Kraft.
Penn State’s search was one that took well over two months before Kraft was able to hire Matt Campbell away from Iowa State. Franklin, meanwhile, was hired at Virginia Tech in mid-November and hit the ground running in recruiting.
As is always the case, especially when there is a coaching change, the Transfer Portal became a big piece of putting together a roster for 2026. Campbell has added some talent, and looking ahead, the Nittany Lions have a fairly doable schedule. However, that didn’t stop one college football writer from dropping an eye-opening bold prediction for next fall.
Penn State Gets a Bad Bold Prediction For 2026
Cody Nagel of CBS Sports placed one bold prediction for each of the way-too-early top 25 teams. For Penn State, he had one that would not have sat well with Nittany Lions fans if Franklin were the coach with a doable schedule in Year 1 of Campbell. Nagel predicted Penn State will go 7-5 in 2026.
“Penn State messed around and actually landed on a great hire in Matt Campbell, but expectations may be too high for 2026 despite a schedule that is more than gettable. Although Campbell is bringing 23 Iowa State transfers with him, the roster turnover is still real and adjusting to the Big Ten could take some time,” wrote Nagel.
Penn State retained assistant coach Terry Smith on Campbell’s staff. The thinking was that retaining Smith would help in terms of not losing as many players in the Transfer Portal as other schools. That proved to backfire as there was major roster turnover and several players left State College to head to Blacksburg to play for Franklin.
Penn State Faces Favorable Big Ten Schedule in 2026
The Big Ten will play a nine-game conference schedule next season. Their first three games are their non-conference games against Marshall at home, away at Temple, and home for Buffalo. Then things get going with their conference schedule.
Penn State will play home games against Wisconsin, USC, Purdue, Minnesota, and Rutgers. Their conference road games are Michigan, Washington, Northwestern, and Maryland. There is no Ohio State or Indiana next season, which is a huge plus for Campbell in his first season. Both were playoff teams this past year and met in the conference Championship Game. There is also no Oregon, which Nagel predicted would win the National Championship.
Going 7-5 with the schedule would be considered not a great year for the Nittany Lions. If Frankkin went 7-5 with that schedule, he would have been run out of town a year later.
Some tough tests are awaiting the Nittany Lions, but no Ohio State, Indiana, and Oregon is a Big Ten coach’s dream. Based on Nagel’s prediction, assuming Penn State wins all three non-conference games, they only go 4-5 with that Big Ten schedule? If they do, it won’t sit well with the fanbase.
Penn State Gets Brutal Bold Prediction From College Football Writer for 2026