A Bold Penn State Prediction: Nittany Lions Win 2026 CFP Title, New Model Says

College Football Network projects the Nittany Lions beating Ohio State twice on their way to the College Football Playoff crown.

The Penn State Nittany Lions celebrate their 31-14 win over the Boise State Broncos in the Fiesta Bowl. | Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Since its Orange Bowl loss to Notre Dame, Penn State has spent the offseason refining the last pieces of a championship contender. One college football media outlet believes Penn State will return next season as more than merely a contender.

According to the latest College Football Network playoff predictor, Penn State will win the 12-team bracket next season and claim its first national championship since the 1986 season. It's a bold prediction regarding the Nittany Lions, who reached the semifinals of their first College Football Playoff appearance during the 2024 season.

College Football Network positions Penn State with another favorable seed in the 2026 CFP tournament. The site projects Penn State earning the No. 5 overall seed and a first-round home game vs. UNLV.

After defeating the Runnin' Rebels, Penn State would face fourth-seeded Big 12 champion Kansas State, which went 9-4 last season. In College Football Network's prediction, the Nittany Lions get past Kansas State and into a third matchup with No. 1 overall seed Ohio State.

Having split their meetings in the regular season and Big 10 title game, the teams play their deciding game in the CFP semifinals, according to the College Football Network projection. Penn State takes the series, earning a date with Clemson (and against former Nittany Lions defensive coordinator Tom Allen) in the CFP championship game. What happens Jan. 19 in Miami? Here's what College Football Network predicts.

"This matchup is everything a college football fan could want — [Cade] Klubnik vs. [Drew] Allar. Both will have risen up draft boards and could even be considered the top two QBs in the 2026 draft." But the Nittany Lions cap a "storybook season and storybook careers for Allar, [Nicholas] Singleton and [Kaytron] Allen" with the national championship.

That ending would be storybook, and it's bold to predict that Penn State, which has lost eight straight games to the Buckeyes, would win two of three on its way to the national championship. Do the Nittany Lions have the roster muscle to get there?

Scouting Penn State's CFP Title Chances

The Nittany Lions return a unique blend of talent and depth from their 2024-25 roster, which won a school-record 13 games and played for the Big Ten title. That includes Allar, two 1,000-yard rushers in Singleton and Allen and five offensive linemen with starting experience.

To replenish its passing game, Penn State signed three receivers from the NCAA Transfer Portal, including Syracuse's Trebor Pena, who led the ACC in total receptions last year. Penn State also brings back offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki for Year 2 with Allar, who has a strong feel for the coordinator's system.

Defensively, Penn State coach James Franklin moved quickly following Allen's departure to Clemson by hiring former Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Knowles. After winning a national championship with the Buckeyes, Knowles said that he came to Penn State in part because the Nittany Lions are "so close" to winning a title of their own.

Penn State returns potential All-Big Ten players at every level of its defense. That includes linemen Dani Dennis-Sutton and Zane Durant, linebacker Tony Rojas and defensive backs A.J. Harris and Zakee Wheatley. Little wonder that Penn State is among the early betting favorites in the Big Ten and CFP title race.