A playoff win and a 12-win season would be enough to solidify 2024 as a special year for most college football programs. However, Penn State and James Franklin are still facing pressure to prove doubters wrong as they head into a Fiesta Bowl matchup with Boise State.
Penn State didn’t just beat SMU, a newly minted Power Four program out of the ACC, on Saturday. They dominated the Mustangs all afternoon. But even in a 38-10 victory, some could still point to the rough game for SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings, who threw three costly interceptions – two as pick-sixes – as a reason to take away from Penn State’s performance.
In any playoff, winning is all that really matters. It’s about surviving and advancing in this 12-team College Football Playoff format. And that’s exactly what Penn State did, winning without even needing much from their star quarterback, as Drew Allar only completed 13-of-22 passes for 127 yards.
While their early season win at USC is no longer classified as a “big” win due to how the Trojans’ season ended and their win over then ranked No. 19 Illinois doesn’t look as impressive as it did at the time, no one can deny a playoff win over a No. 10 ranked (11 seed) team counts as winning a “big one” for Penn State and Franklin.
But with all of that said, Penn State was the favorite going into the game and was playing at home. And if that win is followed by a loss to a Group of 5 team, even one led by a Heisman candidate, Franklin’s detractors will still continue to bring up his record in “big” games and say Penn State failed to take advantage of another opportunity to advance from quality top tier program to among the true elite in the sport.
The win over SMU was Franklin’s 100th at Penn State, bringing his record to 100-41 during his tenure, yet the narrative about him remains and will remain if he doesn’t earn win No. 101 and lift the Fiesta Bowl trophy in Arizona.
Franklin is only 2-15 against top 12 opponents since 2018, a relevant distinction with a 12-team playoff format. Many of those losses have come to Big Ten rivals Michigan and Ohio State, including one to the Buckeyes this season and are why Penn State has only captured one conference title under Franklin and needed the playoff expanded to reach college football’s true postseason and be able to pursue a national championship.
Franklin, like any good coach, isn’t worried about past failures with so much opportunity in front of him. He’s also not worried about another big game ahead, this one far from home and closer to a typical major bowl game atmosphere, granted with more on the line this year.
“We played in a bunch of them,” said Franklin after the SMU win about being used to high-profile bowl games.
“Dramatic pause, so everybody can take that in. We played in a bunch of them. My family, we’re used to spending Christmas in hotels. Not everybody is.”
Franklin also likely knows deep down a loss as a heavy favorite (-11 via DraftKings) to Boise State will ruin the home playoff win for some fans as well. Fair or not, the knock on Franklin is that he beats teams he’s supposed to beat and loses when facing an equal opponent or as the underdog, and that will hold true if Penn State fails to advance on New Year’s Eve in Glendale, Ariz.
