There should be no debate. No questions. No uncertainty. Penn State and coach James Franklin are, without question, the biggest winners of Sunday’s expanded College Football Playoff bracket.
The Nittany Lions are the sixth seed and get an incredibly easy road to the semifinals. Despite no major wins. Despite losing their only two games against top opponents, Oregon and Ohio State.
Penn State opens as a 9-point favorite over No. 11 SMU, then would draw third-seeded Boise State — the third-highest-ranked conference champion, out of the Mountain West — in the quarterfinals. Franklin couldn’t have been happier. Penn State would’ve actually been in a worse spot had it won the Big Ten championship game Saturday night, even though it would’ve come with a bye week.
Oregon, the No. 1 seed, has a tougher path, having to get past the No. 8 Ohio State/No. 9 Tennessee winner after said bye. SEC champion and No. 2 Georgia will likely have to knock off seventh-seeded Notre Dame to advance to the semifinals. Texas, the fifth seed, has the second-easiest path, hosting No. 12 Clemson and then meeting No. 4 Arizona State, the Big 12 champion, which was ranked 12th overall by the committee and is scorching hot, having won six straight games, all by double figures.