Penn State football appears to have locked in its slate for the 2025 football season. According to reports from Brett McMurphy of The Action Network Monday, the Nittany Lions are expected to add the FIU Panthers to the home schedule on September 6. It would be the second time Penn State has faced FIU and the first time James Franklin has ever coached against the Panthers in his career as a head coach. The addition would also round out the non-conference calendar, finalizing the 2025 schedule for the Nittany Lions.
Penn State football adding FIU to 2025 schedule, per reports
Monday morning, The Action Network’s Brett McMurphy reported that Penn State football was adding FIU to its calendar for September 6, 2025. The addition, yet to be confirmed by the program, is the third and final non-conference opponent for the Nittany Lions. Penn State will also face Nevada on August 30 and Villanova on September 13. All three games will be played at Beaver Stadium.
By finalizing the non-conference schedule, we now have a complete idea of what the 2025 season will look like for Penn State football. While the Big Ten has not announced dates yet, we do know the home slate will feature games against Indiana, Nebraska, Northwestern, and Oregon. The Nittany Lions will play five conference road games: Iowa, Michigan State, Ohio State, Rutgers, and UCLA.
The September 6, 2025, matchup will be only the second time that Penn State has played FIU. The first meeting, on September 2, 2007, was a 59-0 Penn State victory in which Anthony Morelli threw for 295 yards and three touchdowns, and the Nittany Lions defense forced five fumbles.
Beyond the score, the contest was notably Mario Cristobal’s first game as a head coach and also featured a return to the sideline for Joe Paterno after suffering a leg fracture at Wisconsin in 2006.
James Franklin shares philosophy on non-conference scheduling
The contest will also be the first time James Franklin faces off against FIU as a head coach, having never coached against the Panthers while at Vanderbilt. Back in October, Franklin shared insight on his philosophy on non-conference scheduling, which Penn State football has clearly done by a Mountain West, CUSA, and FCS opponent in 2025.
“I think if you look at the model of teams that have been in the championship, teams that have been in the playoffs, teams that have won conference championships, I think there’s pretty good data and evidence on what’s the right thing to do,” Franklin said following the Delaware game in September.
“And again, like we talked about before, nine [conference] games factors into that as well. Those things have kind of changed college football more than anything back when you used to play the kickoff classic games and things like that, but with eight conference games, it was different. So, I think, at the end of the day, you’re trying to do what you think is right for your university and your program.”
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