Paul Finebaum on where Penn State would rank in SEC, playoff chances

Paul Finebaum has been skeptical on Penn State since their big victory over the Auburn Tigers. While he believes it was a great game, Finebaum mentioned that it’s wasn’t “that big of a deal” in the long-run.

Today on Get Up, Finebaum spoke about where Penn State would rank among SEC teams. Additionally, he gauged their chances to make the College Football Playoff.

“There’s no way to make Penn State in the SEC work. Now, there’s a difference between where you rank in the SEC and whether or not you can get to the Playoffs,” stated Finebaum. “The Big Ten is not the SEC, not exactly breaking news.

“I think they have a decent path — Ohio State is a troubled team right now. We’re still waiting to learn more about Michigan, Michigan State and Iowa. But they certainly have a path to get to the Big Ten Championship Game right now.”

With huge early season wins over Wisconsin and Auburn, Finebaum’s correct — Penn State has a fantastic path to the College Football Playoff. Still, there’s plenty of unknowns on their schedule, and hurdles they’ll have to clear.

As Finebaum states, it doesn’t matter when the Nittany Lions would hypothetically rank in the SEC. If they win out, they’ll be in the College Football Playoff.

Finebaum: ‘If Penn State is the best the Big Ten has to offer this year, they’re in for a terrible year.’

Behind a raucous, whiteout environment Saturday, No. 10 Penn State sent a statement to the rest of the country with a 28-20 win over No. 22 Auburn, moving the Nittany Lions up to No. 6 on the latest AP poll and dropping the Tigers to No. 10. But not everyone came away so impressed.

ESPN analyst Paul Finebaum was among the many Penn State skeptics, as the longtime SEC radio host thinks the Nittany Lions showed very little to brag about Saturday.

“As good of a game as this was in terms of hype and build up, within the SEC, it wasn’t that big of a deal,” Finebaum said Monday on McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning. “It was a middle-of-the-pack SEC West game. I know that sounds like a shot at Penn State — I don’t mean it that way.

“But if Penn State is the best the Big Ten has to offer this year, they’re in for a terrible year.”

Penn State’s defense had some problems stopping Auburn’s rushing attack early on in the game, as Auburn’s Tank Bigsby turned 23 carries into 102 yards and two touchdowns. However, Penn State’s defense did rise up and force the Tigers to turn the ball over on downs at Penn State’s two-yard line with 3:08 left in the game. Auburn got the ball back at its 38 with 38 seconds remaining and moved it to Penn State’s 26 in the final 10 seconds, but a pass into the end zone on the final play was broken up.