How Penn State football proved it’s a genuine national title contender with demolition of SMU
James Franklin took his time on the field after his team’s 38-10 demolition of SMU. The Penn State head coach did his postgame TV interview, then went around finding whoever he could to give them a hug and share a smile.
Franklin soaked in as much as he could, despite the temperature sitting well below freezing. Yes, he had just won his 100th game as the Nittany Lions head coach, but more importantly, he had just won his first College Football Playoff game.
And after years of searching for a moment like this one, he had it. He has led Penn State to the quarterfinals of the playoff, with a date against Boise State now looming. But there’s more to this win than just that.
Franklin’s 11th iteration of the Nittany Lions is different than the rest. It has the talent to do what others couldn’t: It’s poised to make a run to the national title game. This team is different — not just from his other ones, but from others around the country — and Franklin can feel it too.
“I love the guys in that locker room,” he said. “I said it to them in there, and I’ll say it again. One of the — in my opinion, one of the few places left where it’s a real college football program [is] in there. It’s a real college football program in there and a college football program that everybody should be proud of because those guys are doing it the right way. And at a time where it’s more challenging than it’s ever been.
“These guys put the team first, they put their teammates first, they sacrifice. A lot of distractions right now, and these guys could have played for Penn State in the ‘90s, the ‘80s, the ‘70s, and the ‘60s. No disrespect to the ‘50s, but they could have played there too. Just I’m proud to be their head football coach.”
Saturday’s game was full of examples of how different this team is compared to previous ones. Plenty of Franklin’s teams have fallen down early, with struggles on either side of the ball, that would snowball into mistake after mistake. And there were more than enough signs that it could happen again.
The defense was out of sorts as SMU went fast on offense early, with defenders missing assignments and leaving receivers wide open off the line of scrimmage. The offense couldn’t get going, with star quarterback Drew Allar looking shaky — showing an indecisiveness that hasn’t been prevalent from him this year.
But those waters steadied, and both units collected themselves. The first-team defense didn’t allow a touchdown all game. The offense settled in to dominate on the ground for three touchdowns, with Allar helping facilitate those drives with important completions and a run or two of his own.
While it wasn’t a prolific performance from the quarterback, it still helped get the offense back on track and move the ball when needed.
“I will tell you one thing that’s not going to show up in the stats is how many times he is our leader and the straw that stirs the drink — how many times he puts us in the right play,” offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki said. “We had a lot of run checks in the gameplan. For him to put us in the right play and get us in situation that’s are favorable that allow our guys to execute, that’s a big part of being a quarterback as well.”
And to his credit, Kotelnicki is a large part of what is different about this team too.
He’s changed the offense in a meaningful way, giving his playmakers a chance to create and physically dominate opposing defenses until their will is broken.
The offensive coordinator has helped put Allar in position to make strides, too, but what he’s done for the running game is more than give the offense a gameplan. He’s given it an identity. And it’s one that aligns with the two coordinators — Kotelnicki and defensive coordinator Tom Allen — who rose through the ranks to get where they are now.
“It’s a family,” Kotelnicki said. ”The guys love each other. They’re playing for each other. We’ve had a ton of gritty wins this year. We’ve dealt with adversity and respond the right way. That’s what being a competitor is about.”
That’s not to say previous iterations of Franklin teams haven’t been tough. They just haven’t been this tough.
Time after time the Nittany Lions responded when it could all fall apart. That was the case for 60 minutes of game action against SMU and has been the case most of the year.
But now the rest of the season is unknown — it could be one game, or it could be as many as three. And the Penn State head coach knows that each day with this group is invaluable.
“A lot of college coaches I saw this week talking about, this is a four-game season. It’s not,” Franklin said. “It’s a one-game season with an average of 65 plays on offense, 65 plays on defense, and 20 plays on special teams, and how you value those reps and how you prepare for those reps would give you an opportunity to play again.
“We’re in a one-game season, and we just extended our season one more game, 65 more plays. I think we’ve got 10 days or whatever it may be, and every one of them is like gold.”
This story was originally published December 21, 2024 at 7:30 PM.
