SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — SMU had an anxious morning awaiting word from the College Football Playoff committee.
The Mustangs believed they had a strong enough resume to get into the 12-team field, highlighted by two wins over ranked teams. Even so, a loss to Clemson in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game was enough to spur trepidation; the committee could go with Alabama instead.
The wait over, these ponies will ride on in one of the best seasons in school history.
SMU earned the CFP's last at-large selection on Sunday and will open the College Football Playoff at Penn State on Dec. 21, with the winner moving on to face Boise State and electric running back Ashton Jeanty in the Dec. 31 Fiesta Bowl.
The Mountain West champion Broncos (12-1) were awarded the No. 3 seed in the CFP over Big 12 champion Arizona State.
“Brands like Alabama, brands like Clemson — the blue bloods of our sport — they’ve earned that right, but that doesn’t mean they should get the nod in situations like this,” SMU coach Rhett Lashlee said. "I was really proud and thankful that didn’t play into the final decision.”
The Mustangs (11-2) had wins over No. 22 Louisville and No. 18 Pittsburgh, finishing their first ACC season 8-0 — best by a group of five team their first season after moving up to a power conference. It's SMU's best season since 1984, yet a 34-31 loss to No. 13 Clemson in the ACC title game Saturday night left doubt whether it would make the cut in the first year of the 12-team playoff.
The committee went with SMU over Alabama, giving the Mustangs the No. 11 seed and the ACC two playoff teams a year after unbeaten Florida State was left out of the four-team bracket.
“It hurt what happened to our league last year,” Lashlee said. ”It does kind of galvanize the conference a little bit.”
Penn State has found stability under coach James Franklin since the Jerry Sandusky sexual abuse scandal led to the firing of longtime coach Joe Paterno in 2011. The Nittany Lions have won at least 10 games six times in 11 seasons under Franklin, punctuated by earning the CFP's No. 6 seed despite losing 45-37 to top-ranked Oregon in the Big Ten championship.
Penn State got here with a defense that's top 10 in yards and points allowed per game, along with one of the nation's best tight ends in Tyler Warren, who has 88 catches for 1,062 yards and six touchdowns.
“We're getting better, but we'll see — it's all going to be based how we do against SMU,” Franklin said. “It's all about what you do on a consistent basis.”
SMU also had a long climb back to relevance.
One of the nation's top programs in the 1980s, the Mustangs received the death penalty from the NCAA in 1987 for a pay-to-play scandal. SMU had a hard time gaining a footing in the years that followed, including a winless 2003 season, before earning four straight bowl berths under coach June Jones from 2009-12.
Lashlee has ushered the Mustangs into a new era since taking over in 2022, leading them to three straight bowl games and consecutive 11-win seasons — the latest good enough for a CFP berth.
“There’s obviously a lot of tradition and history at SMU,” Franklin said. “They’ve done a really good job.”
Boise State has a strong history at the Fiesta Bowl, including a win over Oklahoma in 2007 in one of the most memorable bowl games ever.
The Broncos finally broke through to the CFP in their first full season under coach Spencer Danielson, who retained the job after being named interim coach midway through last season.
Boise State lost to Oregon by three early in the season, then closed the season with 11 straight wins behind Jeanty, who rushed for 2,497 yards this season — fourth-most in FBS history and 132 behind Barry Sanders' record.
“Our guys deserved it, they earned it,” Danielson said. “Even in this, there's going to be people counting us out. ... That's awesome. That's what this place is built on, the blue-collar chip on the shoulder, counted out.”
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