Seemingly every time James Franklin went up against the Ryan Day Buckeyes, Ohio State had one decided edge that the Nittany Lions couldn’t overcome: WR. Under Brian Hartline, Columbus transformed into a wide receiver factory, while in the waning years of the Franklin era, Penn State couldn’t seem to find a big-time playmaker on the outside.
Franklin’s solution for 2025 was to go all-in on transfer portal veterans, adding Devonte Ross, Kyron Hudson, and Trebor Pena, in a failed attempt to finally ascend to the college football mountaintop. Though those weren’t his staff’s only efforts to upgrade the position.