The 2024 Big Ten season has concluded and we have a new champion. In its first season after killing the Pac-12, Oregon ran the table and took down Penn State, 45-37 to cement its place atop the College Football Playoff.
Oregon came into this game as the favorite. Penn State benefited from Michigan’s shocking win over Ohio State last week and suddenly went from sitting at home with the sixth seed in its back pocket to having a shot at the top overall seed. The two matched up for just the fifth time in history and provided plenty of fireworks.
Oregon Wins Big Ten, Secures College Football Playoff Top Seed
Ducks Offense Flying High
Penn State came into this game in the top eight in just every statistical category on defense. Led by Abdul Carter and Kobe King, the Nittany Lions only had four games in the regular season with over 300 yards allowed.
Dillon Gabriel and his weapons carved up the Nittany Lion defense. The previous season-high yards allowed by Penn State was 409. Oregon amassed 466. Gabriel was incredible as usual. He finished his day 22 of 32 for 283 yards and four touchdowns and did not turn the ball over. His top receiver, Tez Johnson, reminded the Big Ten world just how good he is in the absence of Evan Stewart, who did not garner a single target. Johnson hauled in 11 passes for 181 yards and scored once. Kenyon Sadiq was a surprise. He only had two targets on the day but both resulted in touchdowns for the Ducks.
On the ground, Gabriel showed his shiftiness and willingness to run but Jordan James had plenty of success. He led the way with 87 yards and two touchdowns off 20 carries.
Penn State’s Offense Not Enough
Despite amassing over 500 yards of offense for the fourth time this year, the Nittany Lions could not keep up. Drew Allar put together one of his best performances with the help of all-everything tight end, Tyler Warren. Penn State has been waiting for Allar to truly take that step and he just might have in this loss. He passed for 226 yards and three touchdowns. With his back against the wall on fourth down in the fourth quarter, he manipulated the pocket, stepped up while being grabbed, and found his receiver to pull within eight.
Much of the success was predicated on the dynamic duo of Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton on the ground. As a team, Penn State averaged 8.3 yards per carry. In the Ducks’ 12 regular-season games, they allowed 3.4 yards per carry, for reference. Allen ran with a fervor that no Oregon defender wanted anything to do with. He led the way with 124 yards and a touchdown of 14 carries. His running mate logged 105 yards off 10 carries. This game marked the third time the pair went over 100 yards in their careers and the second time this year.
Penn State outgained Oregon, 518-466 but just could not get the job done. Two Allar interceptions, including the back-breaker on second and one on the final drive, were too much to overcome.
Onto the Playoffs
With the win, Oregon locks in as the number-one seed in the College Football Playoff. The Ducks will be sitting pretty and watching the first round and will take on the winner of the eight/nine seed game. Heading into the weekend, that matchup was Tennessee at Ohio State. Time will tell if all of the dominoes falling change that.
Penn State now sits at 11-2 with losses to Oregon and Ohio State. Despite all of the chaos, the Nittany Lions will get to host a first-round CFP matchup. In addition, it looks like Ohio State is locked into the field. The question will be whether or not the committee believes the 13th data point outweighs the head-to-head against a fellow two-loss team. Regardless, both the Nittany Lions and Buckeyes should be gearing up for a home game.
The question will remain with Indiana. The committee did reiterate that teams that did not play on Championship Saturday are locked in in terms of their order. Even with Clemson taking the ACC, Indiana should be locked in. However, crazier things have happened.
