Dominic DeLuca and Tony Rojas returned interceptions for touchdowns and Penn State played mistake-prone SMU in a 38-10 win Saturday in the opening round of the College Football Playoff.
The sixth-seeded Nittany Lions (12-2) advanced to face third-seeded Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s Eve by chasing Mustangs quarterback Kevin Jennings into three turnovers, including a pair of poorly thrown floaters in the first half by DeLuca and Rojas turned into Pick-6s that sent the white crowd at wintry Beaver Stadium into a frenzy and SMU (11-3) into a funk from which it never recovered.
Barry Reeger / AP
Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen ran for scores for the Nittany Lions. Drew Allar completed 13 of 22 passes for 127 yards while playing every meaningful snap after backup Beau Pribula — who played Allar occasionally and effectively all year — entered the transfer portal earlier this week.
Jennings, whose electrifying play fueled SMU’s undefeated regular-season sprint through the ACC, finished 20 of 36 for 195 yards with a late touchdown and three picks. He started the day by missing wide-open tight end Matthew Hibner at the goal line, ending the Mustangs’ promising opening possession, and things only got worse from there.
His tag to Brashard Smith on SMU’s second drive sailed over the running back’s head and into the arms of a waiting DeLuca, who ran 23 yards to the end zone to give Penn State the lead. Early in the second quarter, Jennings scrambled to his right and threw against his body in triple coverage. Rojas took the ball and drove 59 yards to give the Nittany Lions a 14-0 lead, which they were never able to squander.
Barry Reeger / AP
The defense’s early rush gave Allar and Penn State’s running game time to settle down. Allen capped a nine-play, 75-yard drive with a 25-yard touchdown dash to make it 21-0. Singleton then fired over from a yard out late in the first half to make it 28-0.
And unlike the ACC title game against Clemson — when the Mustangs came all the way back from a 17-point deficit in the second half to tie before falling on the final snap — there would be no rally this time.
The last two quarters were mainly an opportunity for the crowd of over 106,000 people who braved temperatures in the low 20s with a fairly steady breeze to enjoy the kind of big game victory that hasn’t happened as often as they would like during James Franklin’s largely successful eleven-year tenure.
Now that one test has passed, another big one awaits in the desert on the last day of 2024.
SMU: Like 10th-seeded Indiana on Friday, the Mustangs didn’t do much to validate the CFP selection committee’s decision to place them above bluebloods Alabama and Miami. SMU’s historic first season in the ACC after transferring from American Athletic ended with a disappointing thud.
Penn State: The defense bounced back from a shaky performance in the Big Ten title game against Oregon by slowing down an offense that averaged 38.5 points and 443 yards per game.
SMU: Will look to back up their bold ACC debut next fall when their conference schedule includes games against Miami, Clemson and Louisville.
Penn State: Will try to win a 13th game for the first time in the program’s 131-year history when it heads to the Fiesta Bowl, a game in which the Nittany Lions are 7-0 all-time.
