Penn State bowl projections: How far did Lions fall after Ohio State loss?
Penn State suffered its first loss of the season last Saturday at Ohio State. It has cost the Lions in the latest bowl projections.
“Obviously, again, when you look at today, and the combination of lack of success on third down and lack of explosive plays, we got to look at that hard,” Lions coach James Franklin said after his team struggled mightily on offense. “I think there’s some things that we can do in terms of how we’re calling the plays. And I think there’s some things that we need to do from a fundamental standpoint, there’s no doubt about it. But Drew needs some guys to make some plays for him on a more consistent basis. There’s no doubt about that.”
Some viewed the program as a definite New Year’s Six bowl participant and a possible College Football Playoff competitor before the 20-12 setback in Columbus. Now, some are doubting the former. And, all are ruling out the latter.
Here are the latest projections ahead of Week 9.
Penn State bowl projections before Week 9
Mark Schlabach, ESPN: PSU vs. Texas in the Cotton Bowl on Dec. 29.
Kyle Bonagura, ESPN: Penn State vs. Oregon in the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 1.
Andy Staples, On3: PSU vs. Washington in the Peach Bowl on Dec. 30.
Jerry Palm, CBS Sports: PSU vs. Alabama in the Peach Bowl on Dec. 30.
College Football News: PSU vs. North Carolina in the Orange Bowl on Dec. 30.
Athlon Sports: PSU vs. Alabama in the Peach Bowl on Dec. 30.
Saturday Tradition: Penn State vs. Air Force in the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 1.
Brett McMurphy, Action Network: PSU vs. Ole Miss in the Cheeze-It Bowl on Jan. 1.
Where will the Lions end up?
A couple of things stand out here. The first is that, like On3’s Andy Staples, we too have said that Penn State was on track to make its first College Football Playoff appearance. That’s still a possibility. But, the odds of it happening are now very long.
“Since we started this exercise, I’ve had Penn State occupying a College Football Playoff spot,” Staples writes. “I did this because I’d predicted all offseason that the Nittany Lions would finally level up and prove capable of competing with Ohio State and Michigan at the top of the Big Ten.
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“Saturday in Columbus disabused me of that notion. While Penn State’s defense is there, Penn State’s offense is nowhere near ready to compete with the titans of the Big Ten. I whiffed on that one, and I’ll adjust the projections accordingly.”
So he, like us, drop the Lions from a top spot on the list of CFP contenders. However, the second thing that stands out is Brett McMurphy’s non-New Year’s Six projection. No one knows the bowl system better than The Action Network reporter. But, Penn State ending up in Orlando at the Cheez-It Bowl would be stunning. It would also require a third loss, which feels unlikely.
This week, we side with Jerry Palm of CBS Sports and project Penn State to face Alabama in the Peach Bowl on Dec. 30.
