5 college football breakout teams who will make noise in 2020

All they have to do is beat Ohio State and they’ll get to Indianapolis.

This might be the year the Penn State Nittany Lions finally get to the College Football Playoff. They are among the very best programs in the country that haven’t made it in at least once in the last six year’s of the current postseason format. While they did win the Big Ten in 2016, they didn’t make it into the field because they suffered two losses during the regular season. That’s too bad.

With the Big Ten going conference-only this season, it will allow a strong team like James Franklin‘s to assert its dominance over middle-of-the-pack teams. Penn State made it to the Cotton Bowl Classic last year and handled the Group of 5 champion Memphis Tigers. While a New Year’s Six Bowl is expected, reaching the playoff is what the Nittany Lions have to do in 2020.

For Penn State to make the playoff for the first time in school history, it’s pretty simple really. All the Nittany Lions have to do is beat the Ohio State Buckeyes and not lose more than once during conference play. With one loss and a head-to-head tiebreaker, Penn State is in prime position to punch its first ticket into the playoff. This might be their most talented team since the 2016 squad.

Linebacker Micah Parsons is the next star at LBU, as he is the overwhelming favorite to win the Dick Butkus Award. Quarterback Sean Clifford returns with a great deal of confidence from how he played in the second half of last season. If all goes well for Penn State this fall, the Nittany Lions can reach the playoff, maybe get to the title bout and win it. This is all on the table for 2020.