The Lions247 team has its finger on the pulse of Penn State transfer portal news, recruiting, coaching staff moves and more after James Franklin's squad was eliminated in the semifinals of the College

For years, Penn State had a pair of popular cheers, “The Nittany Lion” and "Short Yell State.” In the mid-1970s, according to Penn State historian Lou Prato, the Nittany Lions’ cheerleaders were awed when making road trips with the team to Ohio State and USC, both of which used call-and-response cheers among fans to liven the in-stadium atmosphere.

Penn State football has a few culprits for Thursday's heartbreaking Orange Bowl loss to a gritty Notre Dame team

Defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton (6-5, 266) was a force opposite Abdul Carter and could wind up on multiple preseason All-America teams. Dennis-Sutton had eight sacks, 13 tackles for loss, nine quarterback hurries, an interception and two fumble recoveries last year.

Penn State defensive coordinator Tom Allen has agreed to take the same position at Clemson, the school announced on Tuesday. Allen, who just finished his first season as Penn State's defensive coordinator and linebackers coach,

Defensive tackle Zane Durant announced he’ll be returning to the Nittany Lions for the 2025 season instead of declaring for the NFL draft. He made the announcement via his Twitter account.

The period following the end of the regular season is incredibly busy for college football coaches, as they navigate the Transfer Portal and high school recruitment. That is only exacerbated for teams like Notre Dame where head coach Marcus Freeman is also taking on the challenge of a deep College Football Playoff run.

It's Penn State vs Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff semifinal. Follow along for live score and game updates from the Orange Bowl:

Big Ten play hasn’t treated Penn State very kindly. Since beating Northwestern 84-80 win to start conference play and 2025, the Nittany Lions have dropped four consecutive games, three to ranked Big Ten opponents.

After all, that extra attention limited Smith to one catch for three yards but opened up opportunities for his teammates in the 28-14 win that earned Ohio State a berth in Monday night’s national championship game against Notre Dame.

Notre Dame second-year offensive lineman Charles Jagusah may make his first start of the season, and only the second of his career, in Monday night's national championship game against Ohio State.