Skip to main content
Join Now
Team Avatar
Penn State

Paul Finebaum: Penn State CFP hopes 'hanging by a thread'

Grant Grubbs Profile Pictureby: Grant Grubbs17 hours agogrant_grubbs_
james-franklin-penn-state-football-1-on3-scaled (2)

Paul Finebaum believes Penn State has no room for error. During an appearance on SportsCenter on Monday, the ESPN analyst explained why the Nittany Lions’ loss against Oregon on Saturday puts them on thin ice for the remainder of the regular season.

“I wouldn’t say they looked like garbage. They lost in double overtime. And listen, they’re a very good team, but if they can’t win big home games against one of their new Big Ten rivals, how are we going to expect them to go to Columbus and beat the defending national champions?” Finebaum said of Penn State.

“Ultimately, Matt, I think Penn State is hanging by a thread in the CFP race. Another loss, and I don’t know why they should get in when you consider their incredibly weak non-conference slate.”

After three games against non-Power Four opponents to start its season, Penn State squared off against Oregon this past weekend. The Nittany Lions ultimately proved unprepared for the showdown, suffering a 30-24 loss in overtime.

In the loss, PSU’s offense sputtered, amassing just 276 total yards. Most notably, Penn State quarterback Drew Allar couldn’t find a rhythm. He completed 14-of-his-25 pass attempts for 137 yards and two touchdowns, while throwing an interception.

Penn State had no excuses for its performance. Over 100,000 fans were in attendance at Beaver Stadium for the highly-anticipated Big Ten showdown.

Alas, those fans quickly turned on Penn State when Oregon took a 17-3 lead early in the fourth quarter. Nittany Lions fans didn’t hide their frustration, booing Penn State and calling for head coach James Franklin to be fired.

Under Franklin, PSU has now lost 15 consecutive games against top-six opponents. With no impressive non-conference victories and Ohio State and Indiana still ahead, Penn State can’t afford any more mistakes. Franklin didn’t run away from the harsh reality of the situation.

“There’s going to be a lot to learn from it, obviously,” Franklin said after the loss. “The way college football is today, there’s going to be very few teams that finish the end of the season unscathed.

“We’ve got to learn from this. We need to have a great week next week. We’ve got to tune out all the noise, and we’ve got to get better from this and get on a roll for the rest of the season.”

On Saturday, Penn State will look to bounce back with a showdown against UCLA at 3:30 p.m. ET. The game will air live on CBS.