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In a surprising turn of events, the Penn State football team has made it into the Big Ten Championship Game on Saturday to take on No. 1 Oregon. James Franklin and company benefitted from Ohio State's shocking loss against Michigan to backdoor their way into Indianapolis.
Of course, beating the Ducks will be no easy task. Oregon is the only remaining undefeated team in the FBS and has rolled through all of its opponents this season, including an impressive win over those same Buckeyes that knocked off Penn State in Happy Valley.
One of the big keys for Penn State to pull off the upset on Saturday will be the performance of edge rusher Abdul Carter. The projected first-round pick is a true game-wrecking talent and has the ability to completely destroy an offense's game plan if it doesn't account for him properly. Before the Big Ten title game, Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel heaped praise on Carter, according to Daniel Gallen of 247 Sports.
“He wreaks havoc,” Gabriel said, per Gallen. “He’s a disruptive player. Extremely physical, but his ability to go from extremely physical to finesse and speed is impressive.”
Carter ranks 11th in college football this season with 10 sacks and has a chance to be the first edge rusher taken in this year's NFL Draft. Oregon will have to devise a game plan to take Carter out of the game and neutralize his impact for Penn State.
James Franklin has another chance to win the big one at Penn State
One of the most common criticisms of Penn State head coach James Franklin during his time in Happy Valley has been about how he struggles to win big games. Franklin has lost eight games in a row against Ohio State and will be coaching in just his second conference championship game in his 11th season with the program.
On Saturday, Franklin will have another chance to prove that he can be the guy that delivers on these types of stages for the Nittany Lions. He will have to knock off one of the best teams in the nation in order to prove that, so Franklin has a tall task in front of him.
Even if Penn State falls short on Saturday, it will still get a chance to win a National Championship with a bid in the 12-team College Football Playoff. However, a win in Saturday's game would give Penn State a first-round bye in the CFP and greatly increase its chances of getting to the title game.
Penn State had plenty of chances to pick up a marquee home win over Ohio State this season, but an improbable goal line stand by the Buckeyes defense allowed them to walk away with a 20-13 win.
Penn State has shown that it has the roster to get into those big moments against top teams, but it hasn't shown that it can get through them and make the plays necessary to pick up these big wins. On Saturday, Franklin and company will have another chance to change the narrative.
