UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Depending on who you asked -- and depending on which conference they came from -- the nation was split on whether SMU should've been in the College Football Playoff.
Despite coming back from down 17 to Clemson in the ACC Championship earlier this month and losing on a heartbreaking 56-yard field goal at the buzzer, not everyone in the nation was sold that the Mustangs had done enough to make their first playoff.
Former Alabama coach Nick Saban defended three-loss SEC teams like Alabama, Ole Miss and South Carolina on Selection Sunday just minutes before his ESPN crew announced the Mustangs secured the final at-large bid. Since, Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin has lived on Twitter/X, bashing the College Football Playoff committee's decision every chance he gets.
Saturday's 28-point blowout at Beaver Stadium didn't help SMU's argument -- and only made it easier for Kiffin and his SEC counterparts to double down.
The Mustangs became the most successful team in college football history to make the jump from a Group of Five conference to a power conference this season. They were the first to go 8-0 in conference play, reach their conference championship and make the College Football Playoff in that inaugural season.
But in the postseason, and especially Saturday in the playoff, SMU showed it still has work to do to be on the level with blue blood programs like Clemson and Penn State. The Mustangs are still a work in progress.
Quarterback Kevin Jennings emerged as one of the nation's greatest surprises this year. He went from backup to All-ACC quarterback, capturing the attention of Saban and pundits across the sport. As just a sophomore, he became an early pick to emerge as a Heisman finalist next year.
But against one of the nation's top defenses, some of his weaknesses showed.
Jennings threw three interceptions, two of which were returned for a combined 82 yards for touchdowns. His SMU offense, which ranked sixth in the nation in points per game this year (38.5), scored just 10.
The Mustang defense had another impressive showing, forcing multiple turnovers on downs and holding Penn State's offense scoreless on its first four offensive drives, but it wasn't enough to overcome the mistakes.
With the loss, SMU finished its season dropping its last two games and not beating a team currently ranked in the top 25. It lost by just a field goal to No. 16 Clemson and No. 17 BYU. But with a big opportunity against No. 4 Penn State, the Mustangs couldn't compete.
The first two games of the College Football Playoff -- SMU's and Indiana's 27-17 loss to Notre Dame Friday -- have prompted some to call the expansion of the playoff into question. But even with four teams, blowouts still happened.
In the 10 years of the four-team playoff, the 20 semifinal games were decided by an average margin of 17.9 points per game. The 10 national title games were decided by 21.4 points per game.
SMU may have become an easy target for the Kiffins of the world, but it's not an anomaly. It didn't have its best game when all eyes were watching, and that may be what it's remembered for this season.
But the Mustangs are still building. They made it to the big stage, and they could be back soon.
Now, they just have to learn from it when the opportunity does come again.
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