This is not about validation exactly. Still, it kind of is. For SMU and Penn State both.
And each side knows it.
When the 11th-seeded Mustangs (11-2) walk into wintry Beaver Stadium on Saturday to meet the sixth-seeded Nittany Lions (11-2) in the first round of the expanded College Football Playoff, they know that more than a few people — particularly those who live in Alabama — will think they have no right to be there in the first place.
“We feel like not necessarily we want to prove doubters wrong,” said safety Jonathan McGill, a graduate transfer from Stanford. “But I feel like we want to prove ourselves right more than anything. … We deserve to be at this stage and on this platform.”
A platform Penn State finally has reached after spending the last decade on the fringe of the playoff conversation but unable — thanks largely to nearly annual pratfalls against Ohio State — to actually butt in.
If the 12-team field had existed from the CFP’s inception, the Nittany Lions might have been a fixture. Only the field was limited to four teams during its first 10 iterations.
And despite finishing in the top 12 in the final CFP ranking a half-dozen times before 2024, they never saw “Penn State” pop up on the bracket until the selection committee gave them a home game against a program that has gotten awfully comfortable awfully quickly at upending the status quo.
The Nittany Lions are wary to be sure. They also believe they are primed for a breakthrough that feels long overdue during coach James Franklin’s solid if not wildly successful — by Penn State’s exacting standards anyway — 11-year tenure.
“Something we always talk about is, ‘Win the national championship, get in the playoffs,’ and now we’re here,” said defensive end Abdul Carter, the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. “We have this opportunity. We’ve got to do everything in our power to make sure we take advantage.”
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The winner earns a trip to Arizona on New Year’s Eve to face Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl, this year a CFP quarterfinal. To get there, the Mustangs will have to survive the elements — the temperature is expected to hover in the mid-20s with the wind chill dipping lower than that — and a massive white-clad crowd eager for catharsis.
“Everybody’s against us,” Mustangs quarterback Kevin Jennings said. “It’s supposed be like 100,000 people there and everybody just booing you. So probably one of the best feelings in the world, just going in and be able to upset a talented team.”
Agent Carter
If Jennings and the rest of SMU’s up-tempo offense wants to pull off a stunner, they will have to do what few have done this fall: stop Carter.
The junior, who moved from outside linebacker to defensive end this season, ranked third in the FBS with 19½ tackles for a loss and his 10 sacks tied for the Big Ten lead. While he’s not keeping particularly close tabs on what honors come his way, he admitted getting “snubbed” for the Nagurski Award — given annually to the best defensive player in the country — added more fuel to a fire that’s ever-present.
“Did some pushups that night,” Carter said. “Maxed out. I just use as motivation, I try not to get discouraged. I still feel like I’m the best defensive player, but not just defensive player. I feel like I’m the best player in general.”
Punishing Ponies
Lost in the glare Jennings provides is the play of an SMU defense that allows just 20.8 points per game and has racked up 40 sacks, which coach Rhett Lashlee pointed to as proof his Mustangs are more well-rounded than they’ve been given credit for in some circles.
It helps that the Mustangs are willing to play with physicality, something SMU will need to rely on against the bigger, deeper Nittany Lions and an offense featuring do-everything tight end Tyler Warren.
“We take pride in that,” safety Isaiah Nwokobia said. “Obviously you’re going to have your bangs, your bruises, it’s going to hurt. It’s football, man. But we love it.”
Beau’s a ‘no go’
Penn State will be without backup quarterback Beau Pribula, who made what he called an “impossible decision” to enter the transfer portal in search of other opportunities in 2025.
Franklin supported Pribula’s choice while also bemoaning the timing of the winter transfer portal window, which left the Nittany Lions without a player who had been effective in certain packages designed to maximize his mobility.
Freshman Ethan Grunkemeyer now will back up starter Drew Allar, though its uncertain whether Grunkemeyer — who has yet to take a snap — will see the field.
“Grunk’s done a really good job and put himself in a position,” Franklin said. “We have a lot of confidence in him.”
Return trip
This is the fourth year in a row in the playoff for SMU’s Matt Hibner. He played primarily on special teams the last three seasons at Michigan but has emerged as a tight end for the Mustangs. The 6-foot-5, 254-pounder has 20 catches for 299 yards and four touchdowns over the last five games.
“We thought he was this kind of a player,” Lashlee said. “We always felt like he was an all-around, every-down player and that he could really help us in the run game where we needed a boost but also could still make plays.”
AP’s Stephen Hawkins in Dallas and Travis Johnson in State College, Pa., contributed.
No. 11 seed SMU (11-2) at No. 6 Penn State (11-2)
- Time/TV: 11 a.m. Saturday, TNT/Max.
- Line: Penn State by 8½.
- Series: Penn State leads 1-0-1.
Key matchup
Penn State RBs Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton vs. SMU’s rushing defense
The Mustangs lead the ACC and are fourth nationally, giving up 93.4 rushing yards per game — the lowest in program history. They allow only 2.74 yards per carry. Singleton is ninth in the Big Ten with 839 rushing yards, just ahead of fellow junior Allen’s 822. Both had 100-yard games against No. 1 Oregon in the Big Ten championship game. The only individual 100-yard rushing game against the Mustangs was Louisville’s Isaac Brown, who went for 117 yards on Oct. 5.
Players to watch
SMU RB Brashard Smith was a wide receiver the last three seasons at Miami but switched to running back after transferring to SMU. The 5-foot-10, 196-pound senior has run for 1,270 yards and 14 touchdowns. He also has 35 catches, tied for second on the team, for 303 yards and four scores.
Penn State TE Tyler Warren, the John Mackey Award winner as the nation’s best tight end, is more than just a pass catcher for the Nittany Lions. He’s a 6-foot-6 Swiss Army knife who lets offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki get as creative as he wants. In addition to hauling in 88 receptions for 1,062 yards — a Big Ten record for a tight end — and six touchdowns, Warren proved effective lining up behind center in the Wildcat formation, running for 191 yards and four scores. If things are tight late, expect the ball to find its way into No. 44’s hands.
Facts & figures
The Mustangs have won 10 straight road games, the second-longest active FBS streak behind Texas. … SMU is the first team to go undefeated in conference play (8-0) after making the move from a Group of Five conference to a Power Four/Five conference. … If it’s close late, the Mustangs like their chances. Kicker Collin Rogers ranked third in the FBS with 23 field goals, including seven from 50 yards or more, one shy of the NCAA record in a single season. … Penn State has won at least 10 games for a third straight season, the first time the program has done that since 1980-82. …The Nittany Lions are 4-5 in bowl games under James Franklin.
