BREAKING: Penn State football earns Peach Bowl bid, will face Ole Miss

After falling short in its two biggest games of the season, Penn State football was left on the sidelines while conference championship weekend decided its bowl fate. But the Nittany Lions will have a shot at redemption in one of the marquee matchups in all of bowl season. James Franklin and the No. 10 Nittany Lions have earned a New Year’s Six Bowl invitation, and will take on the Ole Miss in this year’s Peach Bowl. 

Penn State football to face SMU in Peach Bowl

After much debate over who should be in and who should be out, the dust is finally settled on the College Football Playoff and New Year’s Six Bowl picture. After securing the No. 10 slot in today’s final College Football Playoff rankings, Penn State football was essentially guaranteed a prominent bowl matchup. 

However, there was still uncertainty about which at-large New Year’s Six Bowl bid Penn State would receive. Final predictions had the Nittany Lions in various combinations of the Fiesta Bowl, Peach Bowl, or Cotton Bowl against SEC, PAC 12, or Group of 5 opponents. 

But in the end, Penn State football has officially earned an invitation to the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, where the Nittany Lions will take on the Ole Miss Rebels. The matchup will take place on Saturday, December 30, at noon in Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Nittany Lions have chance at New Year’s Six Bowl history

The Peach Bowl will be the first matchup between Penn State football and Ole Miss. The Rebels are looking to cap off a 10-2 season. James Franklin is looking to prove that Penn State can beat top-ranked opponents. 

The Nittany Lions also have a chance at more significant college football history as well. A Peach Bowl win would make Penn State football the first team ever to win all of the New Year’s Six Bowl games. This is also the second time James Franklin has made back-to-back New Year’s Six Bowl games, with the first being in 2016 and 2017.

Franklin, who has three New Year’s Six bowl victories, previously expressed that Penn State football is ready for any potential bowl scenario.

“All the bowl schedules are already set,” he said. “We already have the calendars all set for where we would go and who we would play.”  

“This year, we played good enough to win 10 games and hopefully get into a New Year’s Six Bowl game and play well there,” Franklin said. “I think that’s probably more challenging than it’s been in the past with all the different things that have changed in college football over the last five years… I’m proud of it.”

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