Penn State Gets Incredible CFP Draw Thanks To SMU Over Alabama, Boise State Bye

I must state this right off the bat: I graduated from Penn State in 2012. I am a Nittany Lions fan. So, this is biased. 

But I must also state: I could not be happier about the draw that Penn State got from the College Football Playoff Committee. 

When it became clear that Penn State's first-round opponent would be either Alabama or SMU, I prayed that it would be SMU. And that's exactly what the Committee decided, leaving Alabama out. 

If Penn State fans wanted SMU in over Alabama, that means the Committee probably got it wrong. If the goal was to get the best teams, it's hard to argue that Alabama isn't a better team than SMU. 

But hey, no complaints from this Penn State graduate! 

The Penn State Nittany Lions were arguably the biggest winner with the College Football Playoff (CFP) bracket, getting SMU over Alabama and potentially Boise State in the quarterfinals.

(Imagn Images)

As of Sunday, Penn State is an 8.5-point favorite over SMU in the first round of the CFP. What would the line have been if it were Alabama instead? Would Penn State be favored? Probably, but likely only by two or three points. 

That leads me right to the next point: if Penn State beats SMU as they should, especially considering the Nittany Lions are playing at home in Beaver Stadium, they face the third-seeded Boise State Broncos at a neutral site at the Fiesta Bowl in Arizona. 

Plus, Boise State might be the worst team that got a bye – given how well Arizona State is playing right now – and Penn State avoids having to play either Oregon or Georgia in the quarterfinals. 

The Nittany Lions might be favored in that game, as well, despite being a lower seed. 

Penn State entered conference championship weekend projected in the #5 spot in the CFP, but only fell one spot after losing to Oregon in the Big Ten Championship. 

That meant the Committee actually kept Penn State ahead of Ohio State, which was another win for the Nittany Lions. And a bit of a surprising one, given that Penn State lost at home against Ohio State head-to-head. 

Ohio State got arguably the worst draw in the CFP bracket, having to face Tennessee in the first round with the winner playing #1 Oregon. So, Penn State's biggest rival got screwed by the CFP Committee. 

Add it all up, and it's hard to find a team that caught a bigger break in the final CFP rankings than the Penn State Nittany Lions. 

WE ARE!