By WILL GRAVES
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Dominic DeLuca and Tony Rojas returned interceptions for touchdowns and Penn State toyed with mistake-prone SMU in a 38-10 victory on Dec. 21 in the opening round of the College Football Playoff.
The sixth-seeded Nittany Lions (12-2) advanced to face fourth-seeded Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s Eve by hounding Mustangs quarterback Kevin Jennings into three turnovers, including a pair of ill-thrown floaters in the first half DeLuca and Rojas converted into Pick-6s that sent the white-out crowd at wintry Beaver Stadium into a frenzy and SMU (11-3) into a funk from which it never recovered.
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 occasionally and effectively spelled Allar throughout the 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 began the day by missing a wide-open tight end Matthew Hibner at the goal line to end the Mustangs’ promising opening possession, and things only got worse from there.
His flip to Brashard Smith on SMU’s second drive sailed over the running back’s head and into the arms of an awaiting DeLuca, who raced 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 into triple coverage. Rojas snagged it and weaved 59 yards to stake the Nittany Lions to a 14-0 lead they never came close to squandering.
The defense’s early strike gave Allar and Penn State’s running game time to get settled. Allen finished off a nine-play 75-yard drive with a 25-yard touchdown dash to make it 21-0. Singleton then bulled 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 roared all the way back from a 17-point second-half deficit to tie it before falling on the final snap — this time there would be no rally.
The last two quarters were mostly a chance for the crowd of over 106,000 that braved temperatures in the low-20s with a pretty steady breeze to soak in the kind of big game victory that hasn’t happened quite as often as they would like during James Franklin’s largely successful 11-year tenure.
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With one test now passed, another big one awaits in the desert on the last day of 2024.
Takeaways
SMU >> Just like 10th-seeded Indiana on Friday, the Mustangs didn’t do much to validate the CFP selection committee’s decision to put them in over bluebloods Alabama and Miami. SMU’s historic first season in the ACC after coming over from the 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 throttling an offense that came in averaging 38.5 points and 443 yards a game.
Up next
SMU >> will try to back up its audacious ACC debut next fall, when their conference slate 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.
The score
Penn State 38, SMU 10