The CFP Era · 2014–present

Penn State

Twelve seasons in three acts · Big Ten

108–48Record
69.2%Win %
0National titles
3Playoff games
2024Peak season
89Avg. percentile
67NFL draftees

The three-act trajectory

Within-season power percentile against the FBS cohort, season by season.

FOUNDINGTRANSITIONEXPANSION0255075100141516171819202122232425Peak of the era2024 · 13–3
Source CFB Zeitgeist · power ratings
Founding2014–2020

The four-team Playoff era. The bracket is small, the margin for error none.

60–28 · avg percentile 84
Transition2021–2023

The last seasons before expansion — NIL arrives, the portal opens, the four-team format ends.

28–11 · avg percentile 95
Expansion2024–present

The twelve-team Playoff. A wider field changes what a season has to prove.

20–9 · avg percentile 97

Defining games

Coaches of the era

James Franklin2014–2017
James Franklin2020–2025

Roster of the era

67 players drafted into the NFL across the CFP era.

314
515
116
617
618
519
620
821
622
823
524
825

Entering Year 13

The 2026 season opens the next chapter of the expansion era under James Franklin. See the 2014–2025 program page →