The Penn State Nittany Lions bear most of the blame for their heartbreaking CFP loss to Notre Dame

Penn State football played in a historic game against No. 5 Notre Dame who justified the hit. The instant classic was between two decorated programs that had been criticized for decades of being unable to win a major. The Fighting Irish’s last national championship came in 1988, while the Nittany Lions haven’t won college football’s biggest prize since their 1986 undefeated campaign.

Both teams have looked very impressive up until this point College Football Playoff semifinals, with head coach James Franklin’s team coming off two impressive wins against SMU and Boise State. Unfortunately, the Nittany Lions will have to watch the national championship game from home, as Marcus Freeman’s team closed out this game for the ages with a 41-yard Mike Jeter’s game-winning field goal.

A tough loss for James Franklin and company doesn’t detract from an overall stellar season for the program. However, this loss feels like a missed opportunity for a program looking to make that leap from good to great. And much of the blame game will fall on some known culprits who will head into 2025 with something to prove.

Drew Allar did not follow up his performance against Boise State

Drew Allar headed to Miami after an encouraging game against No. 9 Boise State. In the 2024 Fiesta Bowl, the junior completed 13 of 25 passes for 171 and three touchdowns. Although the accuracy was spotty, Allard stepped up when his team needed it most after Boise State cut the game to 17-14 in the third quarter. Medina, an Ohio native, led an impressive streak eleven plays, 75 yards drive to help pull off the Nittany Lions in this quarterfinal.

However, against a much better Notre Dame secondary, Allard was no match for the moment. Despite having a great game for most of the game, Penn State’s leader under center completed 12 of 23 passes for 135 yards and an interception. And Allar’s one pick was brutal, coming into Nittany Lion territory in the final minute. A costly play eventually led to a field goal by the Fighting Irish.

Alar is due to return in 2025 after this bitter end to his best season in Happy Valley. It goes without saying that the 20-year-old is an excellent talent at fullback. Alar gets a first round upset from Mel Kiper for this year’s NFL and could go No. 1 overall in 2026. However, the senior-to-be needs to improve his accuracy. This weakness is especially evident in these big games where there is equal talent on both sides of the field. There is one more level that Drew can reach in Penn State football, and that level can take this entire program to new heights.

Penn State football’s most significant weakness on VR came against Notre Dame

The Nittany Lions biggest weakness during the season was at wide receiver. While James Franklin’s team has the best tight end in the country in Tyler Warren, the wideout core has lacked a dynamic playmaker this campaign. At certain points, it looked like junior Harrison Wallace III would grab the mantle of being a legitimate VR1. And that could definitely be the case by 2025.

Unfortunately, this unit posted some very ugly metrics against Notre Dame on Thursday night. Penn State’s wide receiver core combined for a negative three yards in the Orange Bowl, and that one stat came to the side at the end of the game. So, technically, this unit didn’t have a single reception against the Fighting Irish.

The lack of a true game breaker on the outside ended up being one of the main reasons this offense felt limited in the passing attack. That’s a shame because Penn State’s pitching has been elite this season, especially as the year has gone on. The ground game and play-action passing offense had the potential to be the most lethal offensive combination in the College Football Playoff. But it wasn’t meant to be, and this team’s season ended in Miami with this weakness showing up in the worst possible way.

The James Franklin narrative still has appeal

The narrative of James Franklin’s inability to beat the truly exceptional teams of the college football world is still alive after the Orange Bowl loss. To be fair to Penn State’s head coach, his program looked elite against SMU and Boise State. While much of Twitter may not respect these two teams, both are legitimately ranked in the top ten. However, the defeat by the Fighting Irish puts James Franklin at 4-20 overall against top ten opponents and 1-15 against top five during his time in Happy Valley.

Some Penn State football fans are calling for replacing their head coach after this defeat. If that happened, Franklin would be recruited by an elite program the next day. And overall, the Langhorne, Pa., native has done a great job with the program, bringing it back to the national stage. With Franklin at the helm, the Nittany Lions will be favored to make the twelve-team College Football Playoff every year. However, whether Penn State’s head coach can lead this program to a third national title is still a legitimate question.