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Little Game James strikes again in Penn State’s crushing Playoff loss
By David Wasson
Published:
What if Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani went to the plate in the World Series with a toothpick instead of a bat? What if the Chiefs decided that their best bet in the Super Bowl was to line up Patrick Mahones at right guard? What if the Celtics decided that Jayson Tatum was going to be the first man off the bench in the NBA Finals?
And what if Penn State decided to get Tyler Warren the football just 8 times in the College Football Playoff semifinals?
Those first 3 hypotheticals are ridiculously implausible, of course. No coach or team worth their salt would self-kneecap Ohtani, Mahomes or Tatum like that when the lights are on bright and championships are in the balance.
But none of those championship programs, alas, are coached by James Franklin.
The coach tagged with the moniker “Little Game James” struck again at the most critical moment of his coaching career, as Franklin’s Penn State Nittany Lions only tangentially used their most potent offensive weapon en route to a riveting 27-24 loss to Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl on Thursday night.
The “what were you doing?’ questions will echo across not just across Happy Valley but all of Penn State Nation for eons. Barely attempting to put the ball in your best player’s hands with the game and championship aspirations on the line can get a coach run out of town.
Despite that seeming common sense, Warren’s totals against Notre Dame? A grand total of 9 targets and 8 touches.
Just 8 touches. Why do we get the feeling that will be chiseled into Franklin’s coaching tombstone?
On one hand, it isn’t like Notre Dame just rolled off the bus and guessed Penn State might target Warren a couple of times. The Mackey Award winner as the nation’s best tight end was the best collegiate player in Miami on Thursday night, and the Fighting Irish knew it – with defensive coordinator Al Golden bracketing and bumping and shadowing big No. 44 from national anthem to postgame confetti.
On the other, Penn State only tried to get the ball in Warren’s hands 7 times through the game’s first 3 quarters – a quizzical lack of potential output in the Nittany Lions’ biggest opportunity since the 1986 squad beat Miami in the Fiesta Bowl for the national championship.
Not loading up Warren early also meant potential missed opportunities for more Penn State points. The first 2 Penn State drives didn’t even feature Warren once, and both resulted in punts. On the third possession, quarterback Drew Allar and the offense looked elsewhere on 5 straight plays inside the 10-yard line during a first-quarter drive that stalled short of the goal line and resulted in a 20-yard Ryan Barker field goal.
Conversely, when Penn State finally did find the painted grass in the second quarter, said drive had Warren’s hands all over it. The multi-dimensional tight end took 2 direct snaps at quarterback and turned them into 21 rushing yards, and Warren snared a huge 4th-down reception to keep a drive that eventually turned into a touchdown.
Said matriculation made it 10-0 Penn State, but the Nittany Lions’ defense bent enough for a half-ending Notre Dame field goal and then allowed 10 more Fighting Irish points in the 3rd quarter to surrender the lead.
With momentum squarely on Notre Dame’s sideline early in the 4th quarter, Penn State finally figured out who got it to South Florida in the first place – as Allar lofted a perfect pass to Warren for 27 yards down the Nittany Lions sideline. But Warren banged his head hard on the Hard Rock Stadium sideline grass and missed a few plays while being checked for a concussion.
As everyone in blue-and-white 44s held their breath in the stands, Warren briefly visited the injury tend before heading back into the game. Revitalized by theirF leader back on the field, Penn State finished the drive Warren started – knotting it back up at 17 via a Nicholas Singleton touchdown run with 10:20 to go.
Following a Penn State interception that gave the Nittany Lions prime field position, Warren again was an Allar target in the end zone – with the big tight end drawing a huge pass interference penalty to wipe away a Notre Dame interception and keep the possession alive. Voila, 2 plays later it was Singleton again bulling his way into the end zone for his 3rd rushing TD and a 24-17 lead.
Notre Dame capitalized on a Penn State busted coverage to tie it with 4:38 to play, and Allar threw a disastrous interception (not targeting Warren, for what it’s worth …) across the middle with 47 seconds to play to give the Fighting Irish a fighting chance.
That decision to press instead of play for overtime — a decision Franklin no doubt signed off on — might ultimately determine his legacy at Penn State.
In the biggest moment, his team faltered. Again.
The final nail in the coffin was delivered with 7 seconds to go on Mitch Jeter’s 41-yard field goal.
Penn State’s final play of the 2024? That one was a Warren target, a last-ditch effort Warren caught and got lateraled around before finally tumbling out of bounds to set off a raucous Notre Dame celebration.
Ballgame. Little Game James had struck again, and Penn State’s dream season was over with yet another series of head-scratching Franklin coaching decisions in the biggest moments.
An APSE national award-winning writer and page designer, David Wasson has almost four decades of experience in the print journalism business in Florida and Alabama. His work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times and several national magazines and websites. His Twitter handle: @JustDWasson.
