Eight starters departed from the Penn State defense, yet the offense lost even more when Saquon Barkley chose to launch his NFL career and landed with the Giants. Barkley rushed for 1,271 yards and 18 touchdowns and added 54 receptions in his final season at Penn State.

The argument for the Nittany Lions topping their high win total begins with Trace McSorley, a senior who could be the best quarterback in the Big Ten. McSorley’s numbers might decline, however, with his top two receivers and Barkley no longer in the huddle.

It’s true coach James Franklin has recruited well and has plenty of talent, but it looks unrealistic for a team that returns only 10 starters to win 10 games in a brutally tough East division. The bright side to the Lions’ schedule is they host Ohio State, Michigan State and Wisconsin.

But Penn State is not going to sweep those games and it probably will lose two of three. The Lions also figure to take a loss at Michigan on Nov. 3. Even happy-go-lucky Penn State optimists would find it difficult to go through the schedule and come up with a result better than 9-3.

The play: Penn State Under 9 ¹/₂ wins.