As Penn State heads into the second half of its season the Nittany Lions are still very much in control of their own destiny. Penn State will take on UMass this weekend before heading to Columbus to face Ohio State the following Saturday in a game that will start to shape the postseason picture for the Nittany Lions. In the meanwhile, here are the postseason projections so far some 12 days from the first deciding moment of the year.
CBS: Peach Bowl against Alabama
Penn State’s bowl opponent potential is diverse this week but Alabama still gets the nod here as the most interesting bowl by virtue of not being a team Penn State is about to see on a semi-regular basis and being a team with plenty of history with Penn State. Alabama still has some big games left to go but the Tide continue to move along the season nicely after losing to Texas earlier in the year. Atlanta would be a nice change of pace for a postseason destination as well, so Penn State fans should be more than happy to have this pairing if the playoffs don’t come knocking.
247 Network: Orange Bowl against North Carolina
The Orange Bowl is interesting, North Carolina is less so. Mack Brown is chugging along with the Tar Heels but it’s going to take some convincing for Penn State fans to get as excited about this game as they might some others on this list. This upcoming weekend’s clash against Miami should be informative as North Carolina works through a not terribly interesting schedule.
ESPN: Cotton Bowl against Texas
Playing Texas in Texas at the Dallas Cowboy’s stadium seems like quite the locational power-up but Penn State and Texas have avoided being in the same orbit for so long that this game could be in downtown Austin and nobody would complain. Texas is – not unlike Penn State – in a perpetual state of being relevant while also not quite doing enough to get over that hump. The Nittany Lions have been doing that more consistently as of late but Texas’ resurgence – up until this past weekend – has put the Longhorns back on the map. Plus Penn State will get to face Texas quarterback and former Ohio State prospect Quinn Ewers as if facing one current Ohio State quarterback wasn’t enough for the season.
ESPN: Fiesta Bowl against Oregon
A few years ago this game would have been a lot more interesting, and while Penn State playing Oregon will never be boring, it also will never be as unique as it once was following the Big Ten’s expansion. Penn State doesn’t face the Ducks the first few years of Oregon being in the Big Ten so that won’t take place right out of the gates, nevertheless it’s about to be a lot more commonplace. All of that being said – this is a fun bowl and a few opponent.
Action Network: Orange Bowl against Louisville
Louisville has leapt into the conversation following a win over Notre Dame and very much wins the surprise team of the week award. The Orange Bowl is fun, but much like North Carolina, Penn State fans will have a hard time getting as excited for this game as they may have gotten for games against other teams on this list. That’s not a knock on Louisville but the Cardinals aren’t Texas, Alabama or Oregon.
