What’s Next for Penn State After Their SMU Victory: A Look Ahead to Boise State
It was a slow start for the Nittany Lions as they took on SMU early Saturday afternoon. Penn State was forced to punt in each of their first two drives after a regular season in which they ranked second in the Big Ten in scoring. A 23-yard pick-six by Penn State Junior Dominic Deluca, however, opened up the scoring late in the first quarter. While these offensive struggles continued, a defensive masterclass highlighted by another pick-six, this one being returned 59 yards, gave Penn State a comfortable 28-0 lead at halftime. The Nittany Lions went on to win 38-10, with SMU’s only touchdown coming after Penn State head coach James Franklin pulled his starters in the fourth quarter. It was a dominant performance for Franklin’s team, which was only seven-and-a-half-point favorites at game time. Although college football experts agree that Penn State will need to demand more from their offense going forward in these playoffs as competition only becomes stronger.
If there are ways the offense can get better, fans should look no further than quarterback Drew Allar. He went just 13 for 22, passing for 127 yards and no touchdowns. Penn State’s only offensive touchdowns were runs by Kaytron Allen, one of which was from 25 yards out. This ground game attack will work against an inferior roster like SMU, who struggled to make tackles, but as they face stronger teams going forward, they’re going to need to rely more on the pass.
Penn State prepares to face Boise State in the Quarterfinal round of the playoffs on New Year’s Eve at 7:30 p.m. EST, with plenty of points expected to be scored. Boise State running back and Heisman Trophy candidate Ashton Jeanty will look to wear out the Penn State defensive line. If Jeanty can force Penn State to load the box, watch out for Boise State’s quarterback Maddux Madsen to find open receivers down the field. His touchdown-to-interception ratio of 22 to three led all groups of five school quarterbacks and ranked third in all of FBS. He doesn’t get as much recognition as his star teammate but look for Boise State to take advantage of their quarterback’s skills to try and upset PSU down the stretch.
Fans should expect closer games in this next round of the College Football Playoff. An expanded playoff is what every college football enthusiast wanted, and most agree the first round of this new system did not turn out as hoped. Now that the contenders have separated themself from this system and games are on neutral sites, I believe we’ll get the hard-fought, competitive games that fans deserve. Penn State versus Boise State, despite what the 11.5-point spread indicates, will be one of those games, in my opinion.
