Penn State Climbs to Highest Ranking Since 2017 After Win at USC

The Nittany Lions are ranked third in both major college football polls after defeating the Trojans in overtime.

The Penn State Nittany Lions celebrate after defeating the USC Trojans in overtime at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit. / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Penn State moved up one spot to No. 3 in both major college football polls Sunday after its 33-30 overtime victory at USC, which propelled the Nittany Lions to their highest ranking since 2017. Penn State (6-0) is one of 11 unbeaten FBS teams and has a bye week before returning to action Oct. 26 at Wisconsin.

Penn State, 6-0 for the second consecutive season, rose to No. 3 in the AP Top 25 and the Coaches Poll after defeating USC for the first time since the 1996 Kickoff Classic. The Nittany Lions rank behind No. 1 Texas and No. 2 Oregon. AP voters placed Penn State ahead of Ohio State, while the coaches voted Georgia at No 4 and Ohio State fifth.

Penn State's AP Top 25 ranking is its highest since 2017, when the undefeated Nittany Lions visited sixth-ranked Ohio State. The Buckeyes won an epic 39-38 game, and Penn State finished the season 11-2 and eighth in the final AP Top 25.

Penn State joins Oregon and Indiana as the only unbeaten Big Ten teams. Penn State and Oregon do not play during the regular season. Penn State will host Ohio State on Nov. 2 at Beaver Stadium.

11 undefeated teams remain 👀💯

Repost if your team is still undefeated through Week 7 🙌 pic.twitter.com/lgKkubwazv

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) October 13, 2024

The Nittany Lions rallied from a 20-6 halftime deficit Saturday against USC by outscoring the Trojans 24-10 in the second half. Tight end Tyler Warren tied an FBS record with 17 catches, one for a touchdown, and quarterback Drew Allar led second-half scoring drives of 75, 90, 72 and 75 yards. On the game-tying drive in the fourth quarter, Allar completed two fourth-and-long passes to Julian Fleming before hitting Nicholas Singleton with a 14-yard touchdown pass.

On USC's last drive of regulation, Penn State got a key tackle for loss from linebacker Kobe King, and safety Jaylen Reed intercepted Trojans quarterback Miller Moss with under 30 seconds remaining. In overtime, USC's Michael Lantz missed his first field goal of the game, after making three, setting up Penn State kicker Ryan Barker for the game-winner.

“You’re going to have to find different ways throughout a season to win," Penn State coach James Franklin said after the game. "Some are going to be blowouts, hopefully more of them are blowouts, but some of them are going to be comebacks. Some are going to be home where you get the fans and they’re supporting you. Some are going to be on the road, where things are going against you, and you don’t have a whole lot of support in the stadium. Maybe weather, or whatever it may be, that’s big.

"I think the word ‘resilient’ was probably the best word to define our team today. It’s good to be able to go in and say, ‘Guys, we’re a second-half team,’ but I prefer not to say that anymore. I prefer to be a four-quarter team, a start-fast team, a fourth-quarter team, all of it. And we’re going to have to be that to continue to win the games that we want to win moving forward.”

More Penn State Football

The Penn State-USC report card

What we learned about the Nittany Lions from their win at USC

What they said after the Penn State-USC game

Penn State on SI is the place for Penn State news, opinion and perspective on the SI.com network. Publisher Mark Wogenrich has covered Penn State for more than 20 years, tracking three coaching staffs, three Big Ten titles and a catalog of great stories. Follow him on X (or Twitter) @MarkWogenrich.