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Kirk Herbstreit: Penn State will be ranked in top five to start 2017
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Kirk Herbstreit witnessed Penn State nearly knock off USC in thrilling fashion.
While the Rose Bowl didn’t cap off 2016 the way Penn State hoped it would, there was plenty of reason to believe in the Lions’ future. They could return every player who received an offensive touch in 2016, as well as offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead, who revived the Lions’ passing game.
With that in mind, it’s easy to see why the experts like the Lions moving forward. Count Herbstreit as one of them.
He predicted that Penn State would start the 2017 season in the top five:
Both @PennStateFball and @uscfootball have enjoyed great seasons and with the players they have coming back-BOTH will be preseason top 5!
— Kirk Herbstreit (@KirkHerbstreit) January 3, 2017
At one point, that probably seemed like a far-fetched thought, even when Penn State was in the midst of its winning streak. But after watching the Lions’ B1G Championship comeback and highlight-reel 49-point outburst against USC, that’s not crazy at all.
The question is whether or not the Lions will be the top B1G team in the polls or if that title will again belong to Ohio State.
The way-too-early rankings will likely hit the internet minutes after the national championship next Monday. It wouldn’t be a surprise if other experts followed Herbstreit’s lead.
Connor O'Gara is the senior national columnist for Saturday Tradition. He's a member of the Football Writers Association of America. After spending his entire life living in B1G country, he moved to the South in 2015.