Penn State Heads Into Bye With One Huge Offensive Concern

Week 7's surprising upsets and last-minute triumphs have dramatically reshaped the US LBM Coaches Poll, including a new team at the top.

Week 7 left the US LBM Coaches Poll looking nothing like it did a week ago.

Miami is now sitting at No. 1 after outlasting Florida State in a double-overtime rivalry win on Saturday night. The Hurricanes jumped from No. 3 to the top spot, taking advantage of a weekend that knocked off the previous Nos. 1 and 2 teams.

Georgia, which had been No. 1, fell at home to Auburn on a last-second field goal. Notre Dame, the No. 2 team entering the week, came up one play short of escaping an upset bid at BYU.

That win pushed the Cougars from No. 8 all the way up to No. 3.

Ohio State is the highest-ranked Big Ten team in the new poll after a road win at Indiana. The Buckeyes climbed from No. 5 to No. 2, while Indiana slid from No. 4 to No.

  1. UCLA also made a notable move, rising to No. 10 as the Big Ten’s last undefeated team.

The Bruins were No. 12 entering Week 7.

The Big Ten also has USC at No. 15, Iowa at No.

14, Northwestern at No. 23, and Oregon at No. 25.

Here’s the full US LBM Coaches Poll after Week 7:

  1. Miami (FL) Hurricanes, 6-0, 1791 points, 50 first-place votes, previously No.

3
2.

Ohio State Buckeyes, 6-1, 1725 points, 13 first-place votes, previously No. 5

  1. BYU Cougars, 6-0, 1698 points, 10 first-place votes, previously No.

8
4.

Georgia Bulldogs, 6-1, 1469 points, previously No. 1

  1. Texas Tech Red Raiders, 6-0, 1414 points, previously No.

9
6.

Indiana Hoosiers, 6-1, 1378 points, previously No. 4

  1. Ole Miss Rebels, 5-1, 1371 points, previously No.

10
8.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish, 6-1, 1332 points, previously No. 2

  1. Utah Utes, 6-0, 1222 points, previously No.

11
10.

UCLA Bruins, 6-0, 1206 points, previously No. 12

  1. Tennessee Volunteers, 6-1, 1193 points, previously No.

14
12.

Kentucky Wildcats, 6-1, 979 points, previously No. 17

  1. Alabama Crimson Tide, 5-2, 813 points, previously No.

7
14.

Iowa Hawkeyes, 5-1, 807 points, previously No. 16

  1. USC Trojans, 6-1, 796 points, previously No.

15
16.

Houston Cougars, 6-1, 730 points, previously No. 18

  1. LSU Tigers, 5-2, 569 points, previously No.

21
18.

Texas Longhorns, 4-2, 520 points, previously No. 6

  1. Wake Forest Demon Deacons, 6-1, 514 points, previously No.

23
20.

SMU Mustangs, 5-1, 458 points, previously No. 22

  1. Missouri Tigers, 5-2, 274 points, previously No.

13
22.

Boise State Broncos, 5-1, 266 points, previously No. 24

  1. Northwestern Wildcats, 5-1, 256 points, previously unranked
  2. Florida Gators, 5-2, 250 points, previously unranked
  3. Oregon Ducks, 4-2, 189 points, previously No.

25

Dropped out of the poll were No. 19 Mississippi State and No. 20 Oklahoma State.

Others receiving votes: Arizona 141; Oklahoma State 87; James Madison 80; Auburn 55; Mississippi State 32; Nebraska 19; Oregon State 17; New Mexico 16; UTSA 13; Michigan 10; North Dakota State 8; Wisconsin 7; Duke 7; North Carolina 5; Pittsburgh 4; Air Force 3; North Texas 1.

Penn State, meanwhile, gets a bye week to regroup after four straight losses. The main issue to fix is the offense.

The Nittany Lions return in two weeks for a Halloween matchup with Purdue at Beaver Stadium on Oct. 31, and a start time has not yet been announced. As it stands now, Penn State does not have a ranked opponent left on its schedule for the second half of the season.

In Other News...

Penn States Big Ten Position Just Got Much More Uncomfortable

Week 7 of the 2026 college football season shook up the national picture in a hurry, and the ripple effects reached well beyond the biggest headlines. With half of the AP Top 10 going down, including Georgia and Notre Dame, the sport suddenly feels a lot less predictable, and the Big Tens pecking order got harder to read by the hour. A weekend full of upsets and quarterback absences turned what had looked like a fairly stable race into something much messier.

Ohio State now has its own concern after Julian Sayin was sidelined for several weeks, a development that changes the leagues balance in a hurry. Around the conference, teams such as Rutgers, Minnesota, UCLA and Oregon posted notable results while also dealing with the growing reality of backup quarterbacks being forced into bigger roles. For Penn State, the broader takeaway is obvious: the path through the Big Ten just got more crowded, more unpredictable and a lot less comfortable. [Read more 🡒]

Rocco Becht Faces A Penn State Question Fans Can't Ignore

Rocco Bechts season has become one of the biggest reasons Penn States offense has stalled during a four-game losing streak. Through seven games, the quarterback has dealt with turnovers and uneven play, even as his completion percentage has climbed from last season. The bigger concern is that the improvement has not translated into cleaner overall production, especially on the short throws that are supposed to keep an offense on schedule.

Penn State has not done him many favors either. The running game has been weak, and injuries to key receivers have left Becht operating with less margin for error than he would like. Even so, the questions around him are growing because the underlying issues are showing up in the same places week after week, and the Nittany Lions still need a way to turn a frustrating stretch into something more sustainable. [Read more 🡒]

Penn States QB Faces Mounting Pressure After Painful Michigan Loss

Rocco Bechts latest outing left Penn State with plenty to sort through after a 21-18 loss to Michigan, a game in which the quarterbacks mistakes helped tilt the second half. Becht was part of a messy afternoon that featured two interceptions and a lost fumble, the kind of turnover-heavy performance that can linger after a tight road loss and raise questions about how a team moves forward.

Matt Campbell, though, did not sound ready to shift away from his starter. He pointed to Bechts competitiveness and the room he still has to grow, while Becht acknowledged the challenge and said he believes in himself and in the work ahead. For Penn State, the storyline now is less about one bad night than whether its quarterback can steady things quickly enough to keep the season from slipping into something more complicated. [Read more 🡒]