UNIVERSITY PARK — Oh, what might have been.
Sure, the Penn State football team blasted Michigan State, 42-0, in its season finale at Ford Field in Detroit on Nov. 24. The game was played on Black Friday and broadcast to a national television audience on NBC.
People around the country watched Penn State put on a clinic and thought, “How is this team not one of the best in the Big Ten?”
That’s a great question.
The fact of the matter is this: Penn State — once again — is a good, but not great, football team. Yes, there were some very nice wins during the regular season. A 31-0 Whiteout shutout over Iowa comes to mind. They also blasted West Virginia and Big Ten foes Illinois, Northwestern, Maryland and Rutgers. But there are two games — Ohio State and Michigan — that will haunt them for a long time.
If the Nittany Lions were able to win one just of those games, chances are they’d be playing in the Big Ten Championship Game on Dec. 2. Instead, they’ll watch Michigan and Iowa slug it out for the trophy on Saturday night.
As we learned during the regular season, Penn State can easily handle Iowa. Penn State was in the game against Michigan — until some questionable play-calling led to a 24-15 defeat at Beaver Stadium.
Sure, Penn State will likely get a nice bowl game on the heels of another 10-2 campaign. Again, it’s good, but not great. One of the possible matchups being bounced around the internet features Penn State against Alabama in the Peach Bowl. There would be a lot of nostalgia in that matchup, of course. Who can forget the 1979 Sugar Bowl, which featured No. 2 Alabama defeating then No. 1 Penn State, 14-7? I was merely a child, but I vividly remember the epic goal-line stand that preserved the win for the Crimson Tide.
Don’t get me wrong. Nostalgia is wonderful. It’s a lot of fun to look back at the good ol’ days. As someone who has been watching Penn State football since I was a kid, it’s a blast to reminisce about the days when the Nittany Lions were in the running for national championships. But let’s be honest: That hasn’t happened since 1994, when Joe Paterno’s team put up a perfect 12-0 record with a 38-20 win over Oregon in the Rose Bowl.
But they haven’t sniffed a chance at a natty since that magical season. JoePa didn’t come close again. Neither did Bill O’Brien. James Franklin — who seems to coach well against anyone not named Michigan or Ohio State — hasn’t come close, either.
You might be asking yourself, what is the point of this? Well, the point is this: Enjoy the games, plunk down money for tickets, fight the traffic, tailgate your heart out and pile into Beaver Stadium, one of the great atmospheres in all of college football. Just don’t expect a national championship.
Penn State will catch a break next season when Michigan falls off the schedule. Will that, coupled with expansion of the college football playoff, get Penn State over the hump? Maybe. Who knows? Time will certainly tell.
But for this year, there will be no Big Ten championship game, no college football playoff.
When the playoff and bowl matchups are announced on Dec. 3, Penn State won’t hear its name announced until the talking heads get to the New Year’s Six bowls.
Oh, what might have been.
Chris Morelli is the managing editor of The Centre County Gazette. Email him at cmorelli@centrecountygazette.com.
