Saturday, Dec. 7
8:05 p.m. Eastern, 6:05 p.m. Pacific
CBS
The Big Ten Championship Game airs on CBS for the first time, after more than a decade on Fox Sports going back to the first Big Ten title game in 2011. The new and expanded Big Ten has given us a first-year Big Ten school in this championship clash, with Oregon striding into the conference and promptly establishing itself as the team to beat with a 12-0 record. Standing in the way of a 13-0 season and a 10-0 Big Ten record for the Ducks is Penn State. The Nittany Lions did not figure to be here a week ago, but then Ohio State lost to Michigan as a 21-point home favorite to push Penn State to Indianapolis.
The big storyline attached to this game is not hard to identify. James Franklin has been a good coach at Penn State, but he hasn’t been a great coach – not when PSU keeps losing to the big dogs in the Big Ten. Franklin has had a terrible time playing Ohio State and Michigan over the years. He once again lost to Ohio State this season, and he did so at home after grabbing an early lead over the Buckeyes. We saw how weak the OSU offense is with Will Howard at quarterback. Penn State grabbed an early pick-six against Howard and seemed to have Ohio State in trouble, but the Nittany Lions could not finish the job. It’s the story of Franklin’s career:
He wins all the games he is supposed to win versus inferior competition, but as soon as he plays elite teams, he lacks answers. Penn State has become the ultimate example of the team which goes 10-2 or 11-1 each season but loses the games it plays against top-10 opponents. Now Franklin gets one more bite at the apple against Oregon and Dan Lanning. Let’s see what Franklin and his team can do.
Penn State Nittany Lions-Oregon Ducks Odds
Spread: Penn State +3.5 (-114), Oregon -3.5 (-106)
Total: 50.5 (Over -110, Under -110)
Underdog moneyline: Penn State +136
Hear why Gary Segars loves Penn State in this game off the “3 Dog Thursday Podcast” by clicking play below,
The Nittanies are a live dog
The Oregon Ducks are in the playoff no matter what, and that could lead to a less-than-fully-hungry performance here. Penn State wants this game a lot, and it could be that Oregon might look ahead to the playoff. However, Dan Lanning has had a good track record of getting Oregon to focus and remain energized no matter the circumstance. Moreover, this game does contain value for Oregon. The Ducks want a first-round bye and a more favorable playoff path.
When we consider this game, and when we consider the coaches involved, Dan Lanning is no longer going up against an X-and-O master such as Kalen DeBoer. Lanning went 0 for 3 against DeBoer when DeBoer coached at Washington. Now that Lanning is facing James Franklin in a big game, the matchup should be very favorable to Oregon. The Ducks have the better team, the better offense, and the better quarterback. They’re favored by only 3.5 points. It almost seems too good to be true.
Almost. Go ahead and take Oregon. Don’t complicate it.