Penn State Football the Brunt of Awful National Media Joke

Penn State Football was in the discussion of the College Football Playoff this past week on a nationally syndicated sports show.

But the “discussion” in question was not exactly flattering.

Lucy Rohden, a fanatical Iowa Hawkeyes football fan and a member of the Dan Le Batard Show, said the following in the first hour of yesterday’s show broadcast on Youtube and on the Draft Kings Network:

“Twelve is too many. We’re at a world right now where Penn State would make the [college] playoffs, and we know that’s a problem. We can’t let Penn State into the playoff, there’s where we have to draw the line.”

@lucy_rohden and @LeBatardShow throwing absolute haymakers at Penn State Football.https://t.co/AmXWYYCZoe

— Chris Snyder (@ChrisSn23167237) November 22, 2023

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And how they got to this brief tangent of dragging Penn State into the mud was centered around this week’s Ohio State/Michigan game being the last great regular season college football game in history.

That by itself could be a long discussion because let’s face it, when you expand the playoffs three-fold, it’s going to take a lot of pressure off top tier football teams to win big early season matchups and it does take some of the luster off of late season rivalry matchups featuring undefeated programs.

But, I would like to specifically circle back to what Lucy said.

And yes, I do understand the main undercurrent of her statement was for content and for comedy. Which has been a recurring theme of sorts this fall as the Nittany Lions have repeatedly been the butt of many jokes following their losses to both Ohio State and Michigan.

Penn State’s recent history against these programs also doesn’t help a ton.

So, let me ask you this Lucy, does Missouri or Louisville or Florida State (without starting quarterback Jordan Travis) have any chance to win a national championship if the playoffs were expanded to 12 teams this year?

Who about Ole Miss, Oklahoma, LSU, Arizona, and Oregon State?

Do they have a prayer in the world?

And the answer is simple. It’s “no”.

The teams I just listed are currently ranked No. 9, No. 10, No. 5, No. 12, No. 13, No. 14, No. 15, and No. 16 respectively in the latest College Football Playoff rankings.

The point is this, while Penn State continues to lose to Ohio State and Michigan, so does pretty much everyone else in the country.

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It doesn’t mean they couldn’t win a national title if they got into a 12 team playoff. Granted it’s not entirely likely, however, the same goes for every single other team I mentioned.

The Nittany Lions have faced and beaten a plethora of highly ranked teams the last several years not named “Ohio State” or “Michigan”. Let’s take a look at some of those games.

Rose Bowl (1/2/23) – No. 7 Utah
Result: Penn State 35 Utah 21

Reg. Season (9/4/21) – No. 12 Wisconsin
Result: Penn State 16 Wisconsin 10

Reg. Season (10/12/19) – No. 17 Iowa
Result: Penn State 17 Iowa 12

Reg. Season (10/19/19) – No. 16 Michigan
Result: Penn State 28 Michigan 21

Cotton Bowl (12/28/19) – No. 15 Memphis
Result: Penn State 53 Memphis 39

And look, I get it, with the landscape of today’s college football, most years there are only realistically three or maybe four teams that could really win a national title. Alabama, Ohio State, and Georgia have a monopoly on the above statement and with what Michigan has done the last two years, they can also be added to the mix.

Three or maybe four. That’s it.

But don’t go around slamming programs which are good but not elite just because the powers that be wanted to expand the playoffs to a number that simultaneously allows more teams to get a shot at glory and at the same time lines the pockets of people in the higher ups of college football.

Did it get a chuckle from the rest of the crew when you said it? Yeah, of course it did.

But let my ask you another question Lucy, how did the team that is currently ranked No. 17 in the College Football Playoff rankings fair against Penn State this year?

I’ll hang up and await your response.

MORE: Bowl Roundup – Where is Penn State Projected to Go Bowling?

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Chris Snyder

Penn State Wrestling Beat Reporter at NittanyCentral

Expertise: College Wrestling, College Football, Lays Chips
Education: Penn State University
Location: State College, PA

Even though he had no prior journalism experience, Chris has now covered Penn State Wrestling and Penn State Football for the past three years, including as the Penn State Wrestling Beat Writer for VictoryBellRings.com, part of the FanSided network.

And it's clear he also likes constant torture as he's been a PSU Basketball fan for way too long.

Several years back, Chris made the seamless transition from PGA Professional to computer programmer and thoroughly enjoys following and writing about all things related to Penn State sports during his spare time.

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