Takeaways: Penn State football finds path to postseason success in B1G defeat

Penn State football fell to Oregon 45-37 last Saturday in the 2024 Big Ten Championship. The Nittany Lions battled back from an early 28-10 deficit, but their comeback fell just short.

Now, James Franklin’s team will be playing in the opening round of the College Football Playoff. Despite the loss, there are many reasons for optimism about the state of the team moving forward into the postseason. What takeaways can the Nittany Lions look to heading into next week’s home playoff game against SMU?

Running game helps spark offensive explosion

© Chris Eutsler / Basic Blues Nation, 2024.

Andy Kotelnicki and the Penn State offense put together perhaps its best performance of the season. The Nittany Lions out-gained the Ducks 523 to 469 on the evening.

More impressive was the Nittany Lions’ success in the run game, going for 297 yards at 8.7 yards per carry. Kaytron Allen finished with 14 carries for 124 yards, Nicholas Singleton had 10 rushes for 105 yards, and Drew Allar recorded five carries for 54 yards. The outing was what many fans had been waiting for all year long on the ground, and against the No. 1 team in the country, no less.

While the defense carried Penn State football throughout the regular season, we had yet to see the Nittany Lions compete in a shootout. Many felt that Penn State wouldn’t be able to keep pace if the score made it into the 30s. While they didn’t ultimately win, the Nittany Lions were a turnover or several bounces of the ball away from flipping the script.

Moving forward, it’ll be difficult to find a team with as many fast and explosive players as the Nittany Lions faced from Oregon’s offense. If Allar and Penn State can continue that level of play into the CFP, the Nittany Lions will instantly become a national title contender.

Penn State football lands easier path through the CFP

At this point, you’ve probably heard about the Nittany Lions’ easy path to the CFP Semifinals ad nauseam. Penn State football opens with 11th-seed SMU Mustangs, who are coming off a heartbreaking loss in the ACC Championship. A victory would send Penn State to the Fiesta Bowl to face Boise State. While the Broncos got a bye, they still are the No. 9 ranked team in the country, five spots behind Penn State.

The draw is about as favorable as possible, rivaling only Texas, which faces No. 16 (No. 12 seed) Clemson, followed by a potential date with No. 12 (No. 4 seed) Arizona State.

Meanwhile, Big Ten Champion and top-seeded Oregon will have to face the winner of Ohio State and Tennessee. While the collective outrage will likely cause a change in the bracketing setup, for 2024, the Nittany Lions have a much more suitable path to the title than the only undefeated team left in FBS.

Ultimately, the CFP is an opportunity for James Franklin to reverse the narrative about him and his program falling short in big games. Likely favored to win both matchups, Penn State football has the chance to add two top-ten wins en route to the National Championship.

Penn State football and SMU will kick off December 21 at noon ET on TNT.

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