GLENDALE, Ariz. — Penn State coach James Franklin said his No. 6 seed Nittany Lions were eager to “corral” No. 3 Boise State’s prolific running back Ashton Jeanty entering their College Football Playoff quarterfinal game at the Fiesta Bowl on Tuesday.
Jeanty was limited to a season-low 104 yards on 30 carries in the 31-14 win for Penn State, which has reached a program-record 13 wins.
“Our defensive front played lights out,” Franklin said. “They knew (Jeanty) was chasing records. They were a determined, highly motivated group.
“I have a ton of respect for that young man. We were able to disrupt them. He’s an impressive guy, one of the best in the history of this game, but we’re pretty dang good on defense.”
Jeanty finished the season with 2,601 yards, falling just short of breaking Barry Sanders’ FBS-record 2,628 yards set in 1988 with Oklahoma State. Jeanty fumbled twice on Tuesday, losing one of them.
“They had good movement up front,” Jeanty said. “They have a great D-line and front seven.
“They did not do anything extraordinary. They tackled. They executed. I didn’t play my best. I fumbled a couple of times. I could have played better.”
Penn State (13-2) advances to the semifinal round in the Orange Bowl at Miami Gardens, Fla., on Jan. 9. The Nittany Lions will play either No. 2 seed Georgia or No. 7 seed Notre Dame, who face off in the Sugar Bowl on Wednesday.
The Nittany Lions established a rushing feat of their own with Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton each surpassing 1,000 yards.
Allen rushed for 134 yards on 17 carries and Singleton carried the ball 12 times for 87 yards, 58 of them on a touchdown run to seal the Nittany Lions’ win with 4:54 left.
Allen has rushed for 1,026 yards and Singleton 1,015 this season.
“When you’re able to run the ball like that, especially at this time of year, it is a very big thing because it helps open up the entire offense,” Franklin said.
Penn State quarterback Drew Allar completed 13 of 25 passes for 171 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions.
Nittany Lions defensive end Abdul Carter, the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, did not play in the second half after sustaining an undisclosed injury early in the second quarter.
“I don’t know a whole lot, and we’ll get that checked out,” Franklin said. “Obviously, number one is the safety, health and welfare of our guys. I know he will want to play next week. We’ll find out more. I don’t have a lot more information than that.”
Boise State (13-2) scored on its first possession of the second half after trailing 17-7 at halftime.
Maddux Madsen completed all three of his pass attempts on the drive, including a 53-yard scoring connection with Matt Lauter with 11:38 left in the third quarter.
Madsen finished 23 of 35 for 304 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions.
The Nittany Lions then went 75 yards in 11 plays, with Allar completing a 13-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Warren for a 24-14 lead with 7:22 left in the third quarter.
Allar also connected on a 10-yard touchdown pass to Warren in the first quarter when Penn State built a 14-0 lead.
Boise State squandered a chance to pull within a possession when Jonah Dalmas missed a 38-yard field-goal attempt wide right with 9:20 to play in the game. Dalmas also missed from 45 yards on the game’s first possession.
Madsen was intercepted on each of the Broncos’ final two drives following Singleton’s dagger run.
“Football comes down to execution, and we did not do enough to establish the running game,” Boise State coach Spencer Danielson said. “We got down 14-0 in the first quarter and our guys showed their resiliency, but it felt like it was an uphill battle.
“We weren’t consistent in all three phases to pull it out.”
–Up next for No. 6 seed Penn State: vs. either No. seed 2 Georgia (11-2) or No. 7 seed Notre Dame (12-1), Orange Bowl, Jan. 9, 7:30 p.m. (College Football Playoff semifinal)
–About Georgia: Redshirt sophomore quarterback Gunner Stockton is starting after Carson Beck sustained a season-ending elbow injury. Stockton led the Bulldogs to an overtime win against Texas in the Southeastern Conference title game. Florida transfer Trevor Etienne had two rushing touchdowns for the Bulldogs in the game.
–About Notre Dame: The Fighting Irish, on an 11-game winning streak, will be without All-America defensive tackle Rylie Mills, who sustained a knee injury in the playoff win over Indiana. Running backs Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price have combined for 1,749 yards and 23 touchdowns on 242 carries.
–Javier Morales, Field Level Media
