It appears Penn State fans are feeling good after the 2024 season.
Last week, we conducted our second annual end of season survey and several metrics saw year over year growth as it relates to optimism around the Penn State football program.
A Bunch Of Overachievers
Of those who took our survey, 57 percent said Penn State overachieved when it came to preseason expectations and another 37 percent felt Penn State met their expectations in 2024. 52 percent of those surveyed said they’d use the word “good” to describe 2024 and another 43 percent answered “amazing.”
When asked on a scale of 1-5 about the confidence they had Penn State would make the College Football Playoff in 2025, fans gave an average of a 4.4 — up from last year’s 3.8. Confidence in James Franklin also grew year over year, up to a 3.6 average answer compared to 3.1 at the end of the 2023 season.
New Fan Favorites Among Media Choices
Lions247 took home the top spot as the place that covered the Nittany Lions the best in 2024, according to the fan vote, with PennLive and The Athletic rounding out the top three spots.
As for television, fans gave NBC the best rating with 3.8 stars while Fox once again finished in the bottom at 2.3 stars.
Complete Results
Did Penn State overachieve, underachieve or meet your preseason expectations?
- 57% overachieved
- 37% met expectations
- 6% Underachieved
Overall, how would you describe Penn State’s 2024 season?
- Good – 52%
- Amazing – 43%
- Fine – 2%
- Disappointing – 3%
On a scale of 1-5, how confident are you that Penn State will make the playoff next year?
- Average answer was a 4.4
- Up from a 3.8 average rating last year
- 5 rating – 54%
- 4 rating – 34%
- 3 rating – 10%
- 2 rating – 2%
On a scale of 1-5, how confident are you that Penn State can win a national title under James Franklin?
- Average answer was a 3.6
- Up from a 3.1 average rating last year
- 4 rating – 32%
- 5 rating – 29%
- Up from 17% last year
- 3 rating – 20%
- Was most common last year
- 1 rating – 12%
- 2 rating – 8%
On a scale of 1-5, how confident are you that Penn State will win a national title in your lifetime?
- Average answer was a 3.7
- Up from a 3.5 average rating last year
- 5 rating – 32%
- 4 rating – 26%
- 3 rating – 25%
- 2 rating – 13%
- 1 rating – 3%
- Down from 10% last year
Which media outlet covered Penn State the best this season?
- Lions247
- PennLive
- The Athletic
- Onward State
- Blue White Illustrated/On3
Network Stars
- NBC – 3.8 Stars
- CBS – 3.7 Stars
- ESPN – 3.6 Stars
- BTN – 3.5 Stars
- Fox – 2.3 Stars
Anything else you’d like to add about the state of Penn State football?
- “A lot of people don’t realize how deep this roster is. That’s a huge difference from an even a couple years ago. The program is set up to sustain success.”
- “Fan base needs to acknowledge the new era of football and donate.”
- “The kids are playing their hearts out. Some decisions Franklin makes during the game are questionable!! I just wish the team/coaches could beat Michigan or Ohio State!!”
- “The players’ parents are the unsung heroes and ambassadors of the program. Duzanskys, Warrens, Allars, Singletons and Deluca’s are classy, charismatic, humble, engaged folks. Penn State football is going places with Coach Franklin and the AD as well as families around the program.”
- “We ride until the wheels fall off. ALL GAS. NO BRAKES. LIONS BY 50!”
Comments About The Media
- “Thumbs down for Gus Johnson and Joel Klatt— Gus is just downright annoying and not a fan of Joel Klatt. Peacock broadcast was a huge disappointment for such a big game. Sean McDonough and Greg McElroy both were all about ND for Orange Bowl, very annoying. Not a fan of some of the sideline reporters, weird times they interview coaches and some of the questions are just downright stupid.”
- “Love listening to Jack Ham. Fox sucks. I tried to give them zero stars, but it wouldn’t submit.” (We’ll fix that for next year.)
- Several people entered a certain four-letter word followed by “Fox/Big Noon.”
Season Moment
- “Hard to top the *second* pick-6 at Beaver Stadium during the CFB first round game, it hasn’t been that loud in a while!”
- “Tyler Warren as center and then running out for a touchdown catch. Tyler will be missed. Love the different plays on offense.”
- “The 4th quarter flag” Really? You knew what you were doing here.
- “I grew up a PSU fan as both my parents are alums. But I’m a freshman at Purdue this year. Obviously we struggled this season, so I still followed State closely. I went to the Big 10 championship game and the orange bowl with my dad and loved every minute of it, despite the losses. Purdue is far from home so still being able to talk about PSU football with my family made me feel connected, even if I wasn’t physically with them.”
You can see our 2023 survey results here.
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