Ohio State matchup gives Penn State another chance to earn 'elite' status

Moments after the last time his team faced Ohio State, Penn State coach James Franklin uttered a few phrases that have continued to resonate.

“The reality is, we’ve gone from an average football team, to a good football team, to a great football team, but we’re not an elite team yet,” Franklin said after a 27-26 loss at Beaver Stadium.

A year and eight weeks later, the comments still ring true.

The Nittany Lions are, at the very least, a very good football team in Franklin’s sixth year at the helm, carrying a 9-1 record and a No. 8 national ranking into Saturday’s showdown with the No.2 Buckeyes.

But the only way they could be considered elite is if they pull off the upset in a game they enter as 19-point underdogs.

Win and they get a seat in the dining room with the teams competing for a playoff spot. Lose and it’s back to arguing about an Outback Bowl bid at the kiddie table.

Franklin knows and has accepted that fact.

“We have very high standards and expectations at Penn State,” Franklin said. “I think that’s a great thing. That’s why I came here. That’s why recruits come here. That’s why we fill up a stadium of 107,000 fans the way we do.”

Saturday’s task will be monumental.

Ohio State hasn’t been tested in the slightest through 10 games this season, their closest contest being a 34-10 white-knuckler against Michigan State at the beginning of October.

They feature perhaps the most dangerous defensive player in the country in pass rusher extraordinaire Chase Young and a Heisman candidate at quarterback in Justin Fields. They rank in the top 10 in the nation in virtually every significant statistical category.

That’s what elite teams do.

“For us to sit here and expect that Ohio State isn’t going to make plays on Saturday, they’re going to,” Franklin said. “Don’t be shocked by that. I’m not just talking to you guys. I’m talking to my team. That’s going to be my message to the team.

“They’re going to make plays. We’ve got to match them. It needs to be one of those types of games, like a heavyweight fight. That guy delivers a blow. You counter. That’s what it’s going to need to be.”

The Buckeyes have a 19-14 lead in the all-time series, winning 18 of 25 meetings since Penn State joined the Big Ten in 1993.

Each of the last two seasons, Penn State has lost to Ohio State by one point — 27-26 on a K.J. Hill touchdown catch with 2 minutes, 3 seconds left last season and 39-38 on a 14-yard Marcus Baugh TD grab with 1:48 to go the year before that.

The Nittany Lions have proven they can put a scare into elite teams. They just haven’t proven they can beat them.

“You got to find a way every single day to beat elite teams like Ohio State, like Clemson, like Alabama,” Penn State defensive end Shaka Toney said. “You can’t say you want to be elite and not be willing to put the work in and do it. You have to come out every single day from January to December with an approach that you’re going to be the best every single day.

“I think our team has responded well since (last year’s loss to Ohio State). I think we came out the right way this year. We’ve had a lot of success. Our year isn’t done. I think we are making those steps of becoming an elite team.”