We are down to our final eight!
#1 Saquon Barkley (100%…yes 100%) over #4 KJ Hamler (0%)
#2 Olu Fashanu (79.7%) over #14 Zakee Wheatley (20.3%)
#1 Tyler Warren (83.4%) over #5 Kaytron Allen (16.6%)
#2 Yetur Gross-Matos (54%) over #6 Chop Robinson (46%)
#1 Abdul Carter (93.1%) over #4 Jaquan Brisker (6.9%)
#3 Trace McSorley (93.4%) over #2 Carl Nassib (6.6%)
#1 Micah Parsons (88.6%) over #5 Joey Porter Jr. (11.4%)
#3 Chris Godwin (67.6%) over #2 Jahan Dotson (32.4%)
It was largely chalk for the Sweet
16, as even Trace McSorley going over Carl Nassib isn’t much of an upset when you consider Trace’s popularity as a three-year starting QB. But how about a decisive victory for Chris Godwin? I thought that’d be a much closer matchup, and wonder if it would have been had Dotson played on better teams in 2020 and 2021.
It’s time for the Elite 8, though. All 1, 2, or 3 seeds. This is where the big boys play. The Google Form to vote is below.
1/2: Saquon Barkley vs. Olu Fashanu
What can be said or argued about Saquon Barkley that already isn’t known? One of the most dominant running backs not just at Penn State during the 21st Century, but really in all of college football. He could win by dancing like Barry Sanders or bowling a defender over like Adrian Peterson. Truly one of a kind and he has all the accolades to show for it.
2. Olu Fashanu
Along with Saquon Barkley, Carl Nassib, and Abdul Carter, Olu Fashanu is one of four “consensus” All-Americans at Penn State during the James Franklin tenure. So although he only started 21 games due to some injuries in 2022, Fashanu was a dominant left tackle.
1/2: Tyler Warren vs. Yetur Gross-Matos
1. Tyler Warren
Tyler Warren was so special as a player that I needed to make sure his rushing stats — as a tight end — were included in the screenshot above. I mean, his redshirt senior year jump is just unheard of. Yes, he was a good player in 2023, but he went from pretty good tight end to one of the best players in Penn State’s history. Just a ridiculous 2024 season that earned him this 1 seed.
We’ll see what the voting shows, but I think Yetur Gross-Matos is one of the more underrated players of the Franklin era. He’s a two-time first-team All-B1G player, and I mean, look at those sack and TFL numbers — 19 sacks and 37 TFLs. That is not far off from Abdul Carter’s 23 sacks and 39.5 TFLs, and Carter had four extra games to do it with.
1/3: Abdul Carter vs. Trace McSorley
1. Abdul Carter
I would say Abdul Carter was a stud from his first game at Penn State, but he got ejected on the first play of his debut against which meant we had to wait a wee bit longer to see the absurdity that was Abdul Carter. I mean, what an absolute joy to experience his progression. From a promising freshman linebacker to a devastating junior defensive end, Abdul left no doubts he was a savage. Him playing against Notre Dame with one freaking functioning arm was the stuff of legends.
I’m trying my best in these blurbs to not let my ~personal~ opinion impact the voting, which means I need to stay quiet about Trace because THIS IS MY GUY. But, I mean, Trace was just freaking awesome, man. I can’t wait until he’s head coach here and Patrick Koerbler Jr. is the staring QB under him <3
1/3: Micah Parsons vs. Chris Godwin
We only got two years of Micah Parsons, but what an incredible two years it was. Parsons led the Nittany Lions in total tackles as a true freshman, and then put up a 109-tackle, 5-sack, 14-TFL sophomore season where he earned All-American honors. I know there will be some debate on if Parsons deserves the 1-seed given his limited stay in Happy Valley, but the dude was clearly awesome.
3. Chris Godwin
Chris Godwin is one of three Penn State players to have 1,000+ receiving yards in a season during the Franklin era, with the other two being Tyler Warren (2024) and Jahan Dotson (2021). That’s how good Godwin was, who somehow never made a first-team All-B1G. Crazy!
