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The first round of the College Football Playoff took place last week, and a lot of people were disappointed with the results as there were a lot of blowouts. Now, the quarterfinals are set, and there are supposed to be some terrific matchups as the teams that originally had byes will be in action. One of those teams that got to rest in the first round is Boise State, and they will be taking on the Penn State football team in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year's Eve.
With this new College Football Playoff format, Boise State was able to earn an automatic bid into the field as they were the highest-ranked non-power four team. They were also one of the four highest-ranked conference champions, so they got a bye in the first round. The Broncos have a difficult first matchup against a good Penn State team.
Before we talk more about this matchup, let's take a deeper look at both Penn State and Boise State.
Boise State has a lot of doubters heading into this game
Boise State was good enough to earn a bye in the CFP, but there aren't a lot of people picking them to win this game. The spread is heavily favoring the Penn State football team. The Broncos have had an incredibly impressive season, however, and the Nittany Lions need to be prepared to take on a very good team.
The Broncos finished the year with a 12-1 record as they went 11-1 in the regular season before winning the Mountain West title game. The only loss that this team suffered was on the road against #1 Oregon, and they really should've won the game. The Broncos had a late lead in that game, but some special teams blunders cost them and they lost a heartbreaker on the road.
Boise State isn't a power four team, and they seem to have too many people doubting them ahead of this Fiesta Bowl matchup. The Broncos are going to come into this one with a chip on their shoulder because of it, and it will be exciting to see them in playoff action.
Penn State was dominant in the first round
The Penn State football team did not earn a bye in the first round of the College Football Playoff, and they instead had a home game against SMU. The Nittany Lions had a crazy crowd behind them at Beaver Stadium, and that made things incredibly difficult on the opposition. Penn State cruised to a first round win.
A lot of people were wondering how Penn State would fare in their first CFP game because of James Franklin and his big game struggles. There were no issues in the first round, but the game was also one that the Nittany Lions were expected to win comfortably.
Once again, it will be interesting to see how Franklin handles another big game. Big games have been an issue for Penn State under Franklin, but again, this is another one that the Nittany Lions are expected to win comfortably, it's just on a big stage. Still, the big flaw for this team in recent years has been…
James Franklin
When the lights are brightest, James Franklin hasn't been able to get the job done at Penn State. That isn't a secret. Nittany Lions fans wouldn't try to argue with that statement. Franklin has had some good teams at Penn State, but they always struggled to get past Michigan and Ohio State, and that is why they never made the playoff in the four team era.
Now, Penn State is here, and they got an incredibly fortunate path as they got SMU at home in the first round and now they are taking on Boise State. The Broncos are a higher seed than the Nittany Lions, but Penn State is actually ranked higher.
This type of game hasn't really been the kind that Franklin has had issues with as his team is a comfortable favorite, but it will be still be interesting to see how him and the Nittany Lions handle things away from home in the CFP.
Penn State and Boise State will kick things off in the Fiesta Bowl at 7:30 ET on New Year's Eve from State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, and the game will be airing on ESPN. The Nittany Lions are currently favored by 11.5 points.
College Football Playoff quarterfinal preview
The first round of the College Football Playoff was a bit disappointing, but the quarterfinal round should provide some more excitement. Here is a rundown of what will be going down on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.
Quarterfinal action in the CFP will begin with this matchup in the Fiesta Bowl as six seed Penn State and three seed Boise State will kick off at 7:30 ET on New Year's Eve.
New Year’s Day action will get started with five seed Texas taking on four seed Arizona State in the Peach Bowl. The Sun Devils got a bye in round one while the Longhorns took down Clemson at home. The Peach Bowl will kick off at 1:00 ET and Texas if favored by 13.5 points.
Game three of the round will be a great one as the top seed in the playoff, Oregon, will square off with eight seed Ohio State in the Rose Bowl. This is a rematch of one of the best regular season games of the year. The Buckeyes and Ducks will kick off at 5:00 ET.
The final game will go down in the Sugar Bowl between two seed Georgia and seven seed Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish took down Indiana in round one while the Bulldogs got a bye. This should be a good one as the Bulldogs are favored by two points. The two teams will kick off at 8:45 ET.
Hopefully the quarterfinal round provides some more excitement than round one, and it’s looking like it will.
