Penn State football predicted to face defending national champions in bowl matchup

After an eventual conference championship weekend, we now await the selection of the College Football Playoff and bowl matchups this afternoon. Penn State football wasn’t a participant in the games this week, but the Nittany Lions were still significantly impacted by the outcomes on the field. There’s still much debate in store for the New Year’s Six Bowl matchups, and there isn’t agreement on Penn State’s final destination or opponent across the various bowl predictions. But one major outlet has the Nittany Lions in a marquee matchup with the two-time defending national champions, predicting Penn State football to take on the Georgia Bulldogs in the Peach Bowl.

Penn State football predicted to play defending national champions in Peach Bowl matchup

The slate of conference championship matchups lived up to expectations, with late-game drama and more than a few upsets. Now, we try to figure out how the dust will settle for the final College Football Playoff rankings this afternoon.

As much debate as there will be over the final four Playoff teams, there’s equal disagreement about the New Year’s Six Bowl matchups. Depending on where you look, Penn State football is traveling anywhere from Dallas to Glendale to play a host of SEC, PAC 12, or Group of 5 schools.

But CBS Sports has perhaps the most interesting bowl matchup for James Franklin and the Nittany Lions. In its final New Year’s Six Bowl projections, the outlet has Penn State traveling to Atlanta to take on the defending national champions in the Peach Bowl.

The full slate of New Year’s Six Bowl games, according to CBS, is as follows:

• Sugar Bowl (College Football Playoff): Michigan vs. Texas
• Rose Bowl (College Football Playoff): Washington vs. Florida State
• Fiesta Bowl: Oregon vs. Liberty
• Orange Bowl: Louisville vs. Alabama
• Cotton Bowl: Missouri vs. Ohio State
• Peach Bowl: Georgia vs. Penn State

Nittany Lions’ history with Georgia is short, but storied

Penn State football may not have a long series history with Georgia, but that doesn’t make it any less illustrious.

The Nittany Lions and Bulldogs have only faced off twice since 1983. Of course, the first of those two matchups was Penn State’s 27-23 Sugar Bowl victory to earn Joe Paterno’s first national championship following the 1982 season.

The second matchup was in the TaxSlayer Bowl following the 2015 season. Penn State rallied after trailing 24-3, but fell 24-17 in Jacksonville. Redshirt freshman Trace McSorley came into the game in relief of injured QB Christian Hackenberg, ultimately setting the stage for the Big Ten title run that would ensue in 2016.

This third matchup would easily become one of the marquee games of bowl season. Georgia will undoubtedly have something to prove after losing to Alabama in the SEC championship game on Saturday. On the other hand, James Franklin could push back on the narrative of being unable to defeat top-ranked teams by downing the back-to-back national champions.

While nothing is certain yet, today is guaranteed to produce plenty of drama. The final College Football Playoff rankings will be announced around noon, with bowl matchups following in the afternoon.

Thank you for reading Basic Blues Nation. Please follow us on Facebook and Twitter for the latest news and insights on your favorite Penn State athletics. For feedback, questions, concerns, or to apply for a writing position, please email us at basicbluesnation@gmail.com or direct message us on our social media. Also, be sure to check out our new site shop. It’s due to your support that we can become one of the market’s fastest-growing Penn State sports outlets!