Analyst Paul Finebaum joined ESPN’s “Get Up”, in which he discussed the College Football Playoff quarterfinals, that officially start Wednesday with a matchup between No. 3 Boise State and No. 6 Penn State in the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl at 7:30 p.m. ET.
The Nittany Lions enter the game as 11.5-point favorites over the Broncos and after Penn State beat No. 11 SMU in the first-round, many believe their path is the easiest to the semifinals.
It’s viewed as so easy, that when Finebaum was asked what was at stake for head coach James Franklin in this game, he didn’t hold back.
“Everything,” he said. “This would be just an unforgivable loss for a guy who’s had a lot of unforgivable losses.”
When looking at Franklin’s time with Penn State, it’s hard to imagine that he would be under this much pressure to win, as he’s accumulated a 100-41 record since 2014.
However, it goes much deeper than that, and his ability to coach against some of the best teams is what creates much of this speculation.