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Penn State Has Two Prime Opportunities Vs. Oregon in the Big Ten Title Game

The Nittany Lions are playing for a conference title or perhaps a favorable draw in the College Football Playoff.

Ben Jones

Penn State Nittany Lions quarterback Drew Allar (15) drops back to throw a pass against the Maryland Terrapins during the second quarter at Beaver Stadium.
Penn State Nittany Lions quarterback Drew Allar (15) drops back to throw a pass against the Maryland Terrapins during the second quarter at Beaver Stadium. / Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images
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Depending on your ticket-buying service of choice, you could make your way inside Lucas Oil Stadium this weekend to see Penn State take on Oregon in the Big Ten Championship Game for less than $20 a person.

It’s a crazy thing to contemplate, especially when concert tickets can cost hundreds of dollars and high-profile sporting events can set you back more than you care to admit. And yet, here they are, Penn State and Oregon playing in one of the most consequential games in Penn State’s history, and the dinner you buy pregame might cost more than the tickets to see it.

That opens the door to an even weirder set of thoughts. Does Penn State want to win this game in the first place? The answer is yes, because beating the No. 1 team in the nation, possibly becoming the No. 1 overall seed in the playoffs and winning a Big Ten Championship aren't things you turn down if you’re Penn State.

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A win over Oregon unequivocally would be the best of the James Franklin era at Penn State and in some respects among the biggest non-national title victories in program history. The upside potential of a historically relevant and meaningful win is endless.

But there is also this matter of the national title race.

Because losing? Penn State might [and this word is doing a lot of lifting] slot into the No. 5 seed for the College Football Playoff. In that spot, the Nittany Lions would be projected to host No. 12 Arizona State, per this week’s rankings. The upstart Sun Devils have been one of college football’s great stories this season. Head coach Kenny Dillingham is a feisty up-and-comer in the sport and an easy character to like in a cast of occasionally unlikable coaches.

But as college football has shown all year long, traveling across the country isn’t easy, and Arizona State would add the variable of making a trip into the northern cold. On Wednesday the temperature in Tempe, Arizona, was 63 degrees. In State College, it was 30. 

If the Nittany Lions host Arizona State and win, they likely would face the winner of this weekend’s Mountain West title game between UNLV and Boise State. The Broncos boast a Heisman favorite in running back Ashton Jeanty, who is among the nation’s best in the game and a generational talent. While Boise State doesn’t pose as much brand-name punching power, the Broncos did lose to Oregon by a single point earlier in the season.

All the same, Penn State absolutely wouldn’t complain about that draw.

Beyond that, Penn State could play the winner of the Ohio State/Tennessee/Oregon cluster, a potential chance to beat a team it already would have seen. The winner among those four would earn a trip to the national championship game. Or as the playoff’s No. 1 overall seed, a not-unlikely outcome of a victory Saturday, Penn State would play either Ohio State or Tennessee at a neutral site as the bracket looks this week.

So which path is better? In the long run, if Penn State wins a Big Ten title but loses in the playoffs, that’s not a bad combination of events. Not to mention, if Penn State beats the No. 1 team in the nation, it will have plenty of confidence in a rematch against a staggering Ohio State team or a complicated Tennessee program.

But if Penn State slots into the No. 5 seed, the road ain’t that bad, either. So for maybe the first time in the James Franklin era, and also maybe the last, there’s something to be said for losing the big game again.

More Penn State Football

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Two Penn State assistants pitched as candidates at West Virginia

Penn State feels "confident" heading into Big Ten title game

Ben Jones has been covering Penn State athletics for 13 years, having been to countless home and road games for Nittany Lion sporting events spanning from the Rose Bowl to the NCAA Tournament. He's also the author of the book Happy Valley Hockey. You can read his work at https://benjonesonpennstate.substack.com and follow him on X (Twitter) at Ben_Jones88

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Ben Jones
BEN JONES

Ben Jones has been covering Penn State athletics for 13 years, having been to countless home and road games for Nittany Lion sporting events spanning from the Rose Bowl to the NCAA Tournament. He's also the author of the book Happy Valley Hockey. You can read his work at https://benjonesonpennstate.substack.com and follow him on X (Twitter) at Ben_Jones88

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