PENN STATE vs. BOISE STATE (PSU -11.5, 53.5)
CFB ODDS, CFB PREDICTIONS, CFB PREVIEWS
NITTANY LIONS @ BRONCOS 12/31/24
It’s the quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff and it kicks off tonight. Penn State is the sixth seed and Boise State is the No. 3 seed, yet the Nittany Lions are double-digit favorites. The Broncos have played in the Fiesta Bowl before and have a 3-0 record. They also have this year’s Mountain West title, which secured their spot in this game in Glendale, Arizona
Reaching the quarterfinals by defeating SMU 38-10 in their home stadium last week, Penn State holds an record of 7-0 in the Fiesta Bowl. The Nittany Lions have more wins than FBS schools like Arizona State and Ohio State, who each have five Fiesta Bowl victories in the record books.
Penn State head coach James Franklin acknowledged his team's rich history after a recent practice session in Phoenix. He mentioned the team's efforts to learn from the past and to gain wisdom from the experiences of previous players.
Between 2007 and 2014, Boise State (12-1) triumphed in three Fiesta Bowls, including an unforgettable 43-42 victory over Adrian Peterson's Oklahoma team in 2007. Despite being underdogs, they also achieved wins over TCU in 2010 and Arizona in 2014.
The opening Fiesta Bowl line had Boise State as 10.5-point underdogs against Penn State (12-2). However, their head coach, Spencer Danielson, expressed confidence in overcoming the odds, reminding everyone of Boise State's unique underdog status as the last non-Power 4 conference team to clinch a Fiesta Bowl victory.
Danielson told doubters to underestimate his team, emphasizing his team’s sheer grit and determination to deliver their best performance against top-tier teams like Penn State. Franklin knows Boise State well . He was formerly an assistant coach at Washington State and Idaho State, so he knows how good the Broncos are.
Franklin praised Broncos running back Ashton Jeanty as the pillar of Boise State's playoff presence. Jeanty's performance this season is reflected in his achievements, including a unanimous All-American selection, the Maxwell Award for outstanding player of the sport, and second place in the Heisman Trophy voting. Jeanty's stats include a whopping 2,497 yards and 29 touchdowns on 344 carries. He is just 132 yards short of breaking the NCAA single-season rushing record set by Barry Sanders in 1988.
On the other hand, Danielson acknowledged the talent of Penn State's Tyler Warren. Warren's prowess on the field is evident in his impressive reception stats, setting single-season Big Ten records for tight ends, and leading him to win the Mackey Award for the nation's best tight end. He also ranked seventh in the Heisman race. Danielson believes Warren will be the first tight end picked in next year’s NFL draft.
The winner will move on to the national semifinals. They will face the winner of the Notre Dame-Georgia quarterfinal which will be played on New Year’s Day.
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COACH RICK FREE PICK:
HARRISON WALLACE III OVER 41.5 RECEIVING YARDS
Boise State’s defense is pretty good, but it’s better against the run. The pass defense allows 246.8 yards per game. There are only 25 teams in the FBS that gave up more. I expect TE Tyler Warren to have a big game, but I also expect Wallace to get his share of catches and receiving yards. Other than Warren, QB Drew Allar seems to go to Wallace more than any other Penn State receiver. He has hit this number in the last nine straight games. Boise State has allowed at least one opposing receiver to go Over this number in every game but two this season…and one of those games was against an FCS opponent.