The 2024 College Football Playoff will be unlike any postseason we’ve seen before. For the first time ever, teams will host first-round playoff games at their home stadiums, which should make for electric atmospheres at campuses across the country.
On Saturday, Penn State took care of business against No. 11 SMU at home, winning 38-10. The Nittany Lions defense capitalized off of three Kevin Jennings interceptions, and Penn State led 28-0 at halftime. Penn State running back Kaytron Allen had two touchdowns on the day.
The expanded 12-team playoff also means the postseason bracket has an extra eight games compared to the four-team playoff system that existed from 2014 to 2023.
In the 12-team playoff, the quarterfinals will incorporate the major New Year’s Six bowl games, with the Nittany Lions headed to the Fiesta Bowl on Dec. 31.
Let’s take a look at which team Penn State will meet in the Fiesta Bowl with a win Saturday.
SN's PLAYOFF HQ: Live CFP scores | Updated CFP bracket | Full CFP schedule
College Football Playoff bracket 2024
Who will Penn State play in the quarterfinals?
The new CFP bracket format includes first-round byes for the top four conference champions. This year, those teams are No. 1 Oregon from the Big Ten, No. 2 Georgia from the SEC, No. 3 Boise State from the Mountain West and No. 4 Arizona State from the Big 12.
On Penn State’s side of the bracket, the team awaiting the Nittany Lions is the Boise State Broncos.
No. 6 Penn State vs. No. 3 Boise State
Boise State is having a phenomenal season in 2024, which has included a Mountain West Championship for the second year in a row. It’s been quite a run for Boise State and first-year head coach Spencer Danielson. Danielson, who is just 36 years old, was named Boise’s interim head coach after the school fired Andy Avalos in November. He led the Broncos to a 3-1 record and MCW title as interim, and the school made him Boise’s full-time coach last December.
The Broncos are led by their potent offense, which currently ranks fourth nationally in scoring offense, putting up 39.1 points per game.
MORE: Picks against the spread for College Football Playoff's first-round games
The unquestioned star of the unit is Heisman finalist Ashton Jeanty, who has an FBS-leading 2,497 yards with 29 touchdowns on the year. The 21-year-old running back needs just 131 rushing yards to surpass Barry Sanders’ single-season rushing record of 2,628 yards, set back in 1988.
Defensively, the Broncos aren’t too shabby either, tied for first in the Mountain West with UNLV in scoring defense, giving up just 21.9 points per game. The unit is led by safety Ty Benefield, who has 73 total tackles with three passes defended, two interceptions, a forced fumble and two fumble recoveries.
EDGE rushers Ahmed Hassanein and Jayden Virgin-Morgan have also combined for 81 total tackles and 18.5 sacks, and linebacker Andrew Simpson has three forced fumbles on the year.
Boise State is having a phenomenal season in 2024, going 12-1, including a Mountain West Championship for the second year in a row. The Broncos' lone loss came in Week 2, 37-34 on the road against fellow playoff team Oregon.
While Boise State has won five MWC titles since 2014, the CFP is unquestionably the biggest stage the Broncos have been on since the 2009 Fiesta Bowl. That year, Boise State finished 14-0, capped off with the upset over Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl, which featured quarterback Kellen Moore’s unbelievable statue-of-liberty trick play.
We’ll see how Boise State will do stepping back into the national spotlight against the Nittany Lions.
MORE COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF NEWS:
- SN's Expert College Football Playoff bracket predictions
- Tracking college football bowl games for 2024-25
- Alabama, Miami among biggest snubs from College Football Playoff
- When do the College Football Playoff games start?
- Full list of locations for 2024 College Football Playoff games
