Jeanty May Not Carry Them To Victory, But They Can Keep It Close

Penn State vs. Boise State, 7:30 ET

Penn State vs. Boise State, 7:30 ET

I feel like the timing of this game is great, personally. Before we get to the ball dropping at midnight, we get a treat of one of the College Football Playoff Quarterfinal games. This is also the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl, which is kind of cool that some of the additional Bowl games get some attention – I’m sure the sponsors love it. I know there have been a lot of complaints about the College Football Playoff in its inaugural year, but I really like it so far. I’m looking forward to this one between Penn State and Boise State. 

Penn State comes into this game with a 12-2 record and looking to make it to the Final Four. They have already played one game in which they demolished SMU with a final score of 38-10. In that game, it seemed like the Nittany Lions barely broke a sweat. It certainly helped that they were able to run back two interceptions for touchdowns in the first half. In the second half, already up 28-0, it seemed like Penn State was just trying to coast to victory and avoid injury. Prior to that game, the only losses that Penn State had were against Ohio State and Oregon. Both of those teams are among the best in the country. Penn State was able to keep the game close in both matchups with both being one-score games. Okay, technically against Oregon they would’ve needed to get a two-point conversion, but you get my point here. This has been a good season for Penn State no matter how you look at it but they will have their hands full against the best running back in College Football. Penn State has been good against the run this season, so they have as good of a shot as anyone to stop their opponent, but it won’t be easy.

Dec 21, 2024; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions quarterback Drew Allar (15) throws a pass during the first quarter against the Southern Methodist Mustangs in the first round of the College Football Playoff at Beaver Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew O’Haren-Imagn Images

The question for this game has to be if Boise State can be contained, because I really don’t think they are just going to outright stop the train that is Ashton Jeanty. For the year, Jeanty has carried the rock 344 times for 2,497 yards and 29 touchdowns. You would think opponents would say “If your playbook is to just turn around and hand the ball off, we can stop it.” Clearly that hasn’t been the case. Jeanty has had just one game this season in which he hasn’t scored, and has had over 125 yards in every game. It isn’t their fault they’ve had one tough opponent, but they really didn’t face tough competition this season. Their lone loss on the books was to Oregon, and they played them very week, losing 37-34 in the second game of the year. After that they’ve beaten everyone, including #20 ranked UNLV last week. They are going to need to find different ways to disguise their run a bit in this one as Penn State will certainly be prepared and won’t just let their opponent run wild. 

I expect that Penn State actually tries to dare Boise State to throw against them. It is likely that their cornerbacks will be in man coverage. I am not overly confident in Boise State quarterback, Maddux Madsen, but he did have a good season with 2,714 yards, 22 touchdowns, and just three interceptions. If they protect the ball, they should be able to at least move the ball on Penn State. I think Boise State is being a bit disrespected here with getting 11 points. I’ll take them as I think they probably lose the game, but will at least keep it close. 

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