The stage, the White Out atmosphere, the frigid temperatures in State College.
Everything about Saturday's College Football Playoff first round matchup seemed to favor James Franklin and the Nittany Lions in a complete and utter domination of SMU in Beaver Stadium.
That domination began early behind Penn State's near flawless defensive performance, in which it held SMU to its lowest point total of the season and Rhett Lashlee's tenure in Dallas, surrendering just 10 points. It was also the fewest yards of offense (253) for the Ponies since 2021.
The catalyst for the stellar defensive showing were Dominic DeLuca and Tony Rojas, who combined for three interceptions in the first half, with both returning one for six points. Penn State took advantage of SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings' mistakes, taking a 14-0 lead as a result of the two pick sixes.
Even when SMU found success in moving the ball down the field, Tom Allen's unit came up big in the red zone, forcing the Mustangs to go just 1-4 inside the 20-yard line after coming into the day scoring at a 87.5% clip.
Drew Allar and the Penn State offense took awhile to settle into the College Football Playoff opener, having two punts and two turnovers on downs in their first four drives. After that slow start, the Nittany Lions scored on four straight possession, excluding the end of the first half, to run away with the victory.
The dazzling running back tandem of Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen were key in said scoring drives, combining for 159 of Penn State's 189 yards on the ground and three touchdowns against one of the best run defenses in the country.
Drew Allar had an up-and-down showing on Saturday, struggling to find consistency for much of the first half and finishing with a line of 13/22 for 127 yards before being replaced by true freshman Ethan Grunkemeyer once the game was all but decided. Trey Wallace and Tyler Warren both had four receptions, with Wallace having a team-high 48 yards on the day.
One challenge is down, and now another awaits for Penn State. The blowout victory gives the Nittany Lions a date with Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year's Eve in Arizona.
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Defense sets the tone early:
Penn State came out slow offensively, having a pair of punts on its opening two possessions, but Tom Allen's defense came up when it mattered most to carry their end of the bargain.
On the first drive, the Mustangs looked poised to capitalize on Penn State's three-and-out, taking just three plays to move inside the the Nittany Lions' 30-yard line after Kevin Jennings hit Matthew Hiber for an 18-yard gain, which was followed by a pass interference call on Jalen Kimber a play later.
The Nittany Lions then clamped down as they were backed up, forcing a fourth and one from the 19-yard line. Kevin Jennings rolled right on the play, having a first down right in front of him, but decided to throw to Hibner in the end zone. The would-be touchdown was broken up by Zakee Wheatley to keep points off the board.
On the heels of the second punt by Riley Thompson, Jennings made another miscue, airmailing a pass right into the hands of junior linebacker Dominic DeLuca, who took it 23 yards for his second career pick six and handed the Nittany Lions an early 7-0 lead.
SMU came into Saturday scoring the ninth most points per game in the first quarter this season, averaging 8.7, but the Penn State defense was able to keep them from putting points on the board.
They weren't done, however.
Drew Allar and the Penn State offense were halted on SMU's side of the field after a strong start to their subsequent drive, as Allar was flustered by ferocious pressure by the Mustangs pass rush on third and fourth down. The Nittany Lions turned it over on downs and were forced to rely on their defense once again.
Tony Rojas then got in on the party. On third and 16, Jennings was flushed out of the pocket and hit the waiting Rojas between the numbers, who then returned it 59 yards for the Nittany Lions' second pick six in the first half to give Penn State a 14-0 cushion.
Following a forced punt by the Nittany Lions, the offense stayed on the field for a fourth down from their own 20-yard line. The Drew Allar quarterback sneak fell short of the line to gain, giving a reeling SMU team a key stop the the ball deep in Penn State territory to start the drive.
Dominic DeLuca then came up big once again, tipping a Jennings pass in the air and coming down with Penn State's third interception of the first half. It was the SMU signal caller's third pick in ten pass attempts at that point of the game as the Nittany Lions' defense took complete control.
Offense heats up to extend the lead:
While the Penn State defense was lights out in the first half especially, Drew Allar and the offense struggled to get going against a strong defensive unit of SMU. The Nittany Lions were forced to punt on their first two possessions, but were bailed out by Kevin Jennings' string of woes in the opening 30 minutes of play.
Across its first four possessions, Penn State amassed just 88 total yards, having the two aforementioned Riley Thompson punts, along with a pair of turnovers on downs. Allar was flustered and struggled to find consistency through the air in his first College Football Playoff start. Allar was 12-21 for 121 yards in the first half, most of which came in the two scoring drives in the second quarter.
On the heels of the third interception, Allar and company finally began to heat up and extned the Penn State advantage to what turned out to be an insurmountable lead.
The first scoring drive was anchored by Allar, first finding Trey Wallace for 25 yards on 3rd and 10 and then hitting Tyler Warren for a 9-yard gain to get to a third and six situation later in the drive. That's where Allar made his impact felt most in the first half, facing that third down, Allar slithered his way for a 13-yard gain to keep the drive alive.
Two plays later, Kaytron Allen took a handoff outside and 25 yards for the first offensive touchdown of the game, making it a 21-0 lead with 5:00 to play in the first half.
Penn State was gifted a short field for what turned out to be their second scoring drive of the first half after forcing a turnover on downs following a failed fourth down conversion of the Mustangs.
Nicholas Singleton was the focal point of the drive, having 20 yards rushing and seven receiving. Allar had another key third down conversion with his legs, running up the sideline for an 11-yard gain on 3rd and 7 to put Penn State inside the SMU ten-yard line. Singleton then powered his way into the end zone on the next two plays as Penn State's offense woke up and extended its lead to 28-0 heading into halftime.
The trio of Singleton, Allen, and Allar helped Penn State rush for 95 yards and two scores in the opening 30 minutes, which eclipsed what SMU had allowed on a per game basis coming into Saturday.
No comeback bid to speak of:
SMU came out of halftime facing a 28-0 deficit and the end to what has been a special season from the Ponies.
The Mustangs showed some fight in the third quarter, but the success wasn't there to match. Kevin Jennings led the offense down the field and quickly got the SMU offense inside the Penn State ten-yard line. A pair of false starts and two incomplete passes forced SMU to settle for a field goal, keeping Penn State's sizable lead at 24.
The Nittany Lions responded with a field goal of their own in response to SMU's first score of the game, as Ryan Barker knocked a 40-yard attempt through the uprights to push the lead back to 31-3.
SMU then had an opportunity to chip away at the lead once again, getting into the red zone for a fourth time, pushing the ball as close as two yards from pay dirt. Another false start halted the momentum before Abdul Carter notched his first sack of the day, an 18-yard loss that forced the Ponies to attempt a 42-yard field goal. Collin Rogers didn't have enough leg in frigid Beaver Stadium, marking the third time SMU went without points after reaching the red zone.
The miss maintained a 31-3 lead for Penn State with 3:22 to play in the third quarter.
Offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki then turned to his Big Ten-best ground attack to put the final nail in the coffin to start the fourth quarter. Penn State went on a 9-play, 75-yard drive, all behind the legs of Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton. Allen capped off the 5:26 drive by powering his way through SMU defenders for the Nittany Lions' third rushing touchdown of the day.
Not that a comeback by the Ponies was likely, as it would have been perhaps the greatest in college football history, but the Nittany Lions offered little to no optimism for such desires on Saturday afternoon.
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