With the 2021 college football season approaching, insider Phil Steele has released his annual preseason magazine previewing the upcoming year. His publication includes plenty of predictions, and there’s one B1G team he expects to have a bounce-back year.

Speaking on the Paul Finebaum Show on SEC Network, Steele talked about which team he expects to be the most improved in college football next season. After a disappointing 4-5 campaign in 2020, Steele expects Penn State to respond in a big way.

“Penn State’s my No. 1 most-improved team,” Steele said, per 247Sports. “Last year, they were 4-5, had a losing record, but it’s the same team that came into the season ranked number seven in the country. You saw them last year outgain teams by 120 yards per game, despite their 4-5 record. I think Franklin’s got the talent there to really have them up there at the top of the Big Ten. And then my number two most improved team is the team I spoke of: the LSU Tigers. Coming off of a 5-5 season, I think they’ll be back towards double-digit wins this year.”

The Nittany Lions started the season with an 0-5 record, the worst start in program history. Things spiraled for the program after back-to-back losses to Indiana and Ohio State in the first two weeks.

Penn State ended with some momentum, winning the final four games of the year. There’s still plenty of talent in Happy Valley and this year’s team will be eager to wipe away the disappointment of the 2020 season.

Steele thinks they’re more than capable of doing that.