Adam Breneman highlights reasons why PSU star Drew Allar could be the No. 1 overall pick in 2026

College football analyst Adam Breneman believes Penn State Nittany Lions quarterback Drew Allar could be the first pick in 2026.

Allar could have declared for the 2025 NFL draft, but he opted to remain at Penn State for another season. Allar wanted to help the Nittany Lions win a national championship and felt like it would also help his draft stock.

Ahead of the 2025 college football season, Breneman heaped praise on Allar and believes he has all the tools to be a franchise quarterback in the NFL.

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"I would say Drew Allar absolutely has a shot to win the Heisman, he is probably my Heisman favorite right now," Breneman said Tuesday. "He has one of the best rosters in the country around him. Penn State brought in some great receivers, which has been an issue for them."

"If Penn State can win the big games next year, Allar's name will be No. 1 in the Heisman conversation, let alone, he will probably be the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft."

It's high praise from Breneman to Allar, but it is also warranted. Entering the 2025 college football season, Allar has the third-best odds of winning the Heisman at +1000, only trailing Arch Manning and Garrett Nussmeier.

Allar has the second-best odds of being the top pick, behind Manning, who may not even declare for the 2026 NFL draft.

Drew Allar is hopeful to lead Penn State to the national title

Before Penn State played SMU in the college football playoff, Drew Allar announced he'd be returning to school.

Allar said it was a football and business decision to return, but the focus is on helping Penn State win the title.

"For me peronally, it was a football decision, and that's how I have always been operating," Allar said via SI in December. "Me and my family had extensive talks about it and weighed everything, and personally I came to the conclusion myself that I feel like it's best for my future."

"But it was a personal and football decision, and I felt like it was in my best interest [to return]."

Allar went 262-for-394 for 3,327 yards, 24 touchdowns, and eight interceptions in his second season as the Nittany Lions' starter.

Allar and Penn State open their 2025 college football season on Aug. 30 against Nevada.

About the author

Cole is an NHL, NFL and College Sports reporter at Sportskeeda with over 7 years of experience writing for publications like CBC, USA Today, SMG, BJPENN, Sherdog and SB Nation.

An NHL fan his whole life, Cole played rep hockey in Canada from age 5 until 17 and grew up rooting for Martin St. Louis and the Tampa Bay Lightning. His all-time favorite players are Vincent Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos, while Jon Cooper is his favorite coach of all time.

Cole attended Sheridan College and received his journalism degree in 2019. After decades of watching and reporting, he considers his knowledge of sports as his primary strength. He ensures that the same story has been reported by at least two reputed reporters before creating it.

Cole enjoys playing golf and spending time with friends and family when not reporting breaking stories. His favorite sports moment is from the 2010 Olympics, when Sidney Crosby scored the golden goal in overtime to beat Team USA for the gold medal.

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Edited by Cole Shelton