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After seemingly endless debate, the 12-team College Football Playoff has arrived, and the first game of Saturday’s three-game slate will take place at Penn State’s Beaver Stadium where the No. 6 seed Nittany Lions host ACC runner-up and No. 11 seed SMU. It’ll take four wins for either of these teams to win the national championship, and it’s a tough first-round matchup for both Penn State and SMU. The winner will move on to face Mountain West champion and No. 3 seed Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s Eve.
Both teams enter the game off losses in their respective conference championship games with Penn State falling to Oregon and SMU losing to Clemson on a last-second field goal. Saturday will mark the third meeting all-time between these two programs and the first since Penn State beat the Mustangs 26-21 at Beaver Stadium during the 1978 season.
The time for talking has come and gone, and now it’s time for the Nittany Lions and Mustangs to hit the field on Saturday for the right to advance on to New Year’s Eve for a meeting with the Broncos. Let’s have a look at everything you need to know ahead of this much-anticipated College Football Playoff first-round showdown between Penn State and SMU.
Penn State vs. SMU: Need to know
First playoff appearance for both programs: When looking for an example of two programs benefitting from the expanded field, look no further than this game. While it’s the first CFP appearance for both, Penn State was always viewed as the poster child of programs who would benefit most from expansion. The Nittany Lions typically find themselves finishing in the top 12 every season but were always behind either Ohio State or Michigan in the pecking order. As for SMU, this is a testament to self-belief. SMU joined…
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Author : Tom Fornelli
Publish date : 2024-12-19 19:29:00
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