3 Penn State Nittany Lions to blame for blowing shot at natty against Notre Dame

James Franklin had to feel that his Penn State Nittany Lions could taste their berth in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game. And why wouldn't he have on multiple occasions throughout the Orange Bowl? Penn State was up 10-0 early in the game and, even after Notre Dame closed the gap, they had the perfect opportunity, forcing a punt in the final minutes to get the ball in a tie game.

But that's when the wheels fell off. And now Penn State is going to be watching the natty from home after Fighting Irish kicker Mitch Jeter nailed a game-winning 41-yard field goal with under 10 seconds left, leaving the Nittany Lions with not nearly enough time to try and put together anything in order to tie or retake the lead.

It's a bitter, brutal end for a Penn State team that seemed to find another gear in the Big Ten Championship Game loss to Oregon but reeled off two CFP wins to punch their ticket to this semifinal matchup. Unfortunately, we're now back in a spot of questioning whether Franklin can really win the big one at PSU and with the Nittany Lions still not having a title since 1986.

That's an awful lot of heartbreak for a program and fanbase to take on. But it's pretty clear which players should be blamed for putting Penn State in this unfortunate position.

3. Cam Miller gave up the most costly play of the game for Penn State

After Riley Leonard and the Notre Dame passing offense looked anemic for their first two games in the College Football Playoff, he found his niche in this game picking on the slot corners in the Penn State secondary. But it was Cam Miller who was on the wrong end of the most back-breaking defensive play for the Nittany Lions on the night.

With the Nittany Lions ahead 24-17 and trying to put away the game with under five minutes remaining, Miller was lined up with Notre Dame receiver Jaden Greathouse. After some initial pressing on the line of scrimmage, the PSU defensive back inexplicably hit the deck and left Greathouse running unchecked up the sideline. Leonard found him with ease and, after making another defender miss, he took it 54 yards to the house to tie the game.

It's tough to blame a player for one bad play and mistake but Miller's blunder was too costly not to. Had he not fallen in coverage when he was the lone man covering Greathouse, Notre Dame may not have even been in a position to kick a game-winning field goal. When you boil it down to that, he has to take some accountability for the loss.

2. Harrison Wallace was a zero for the Nittany Lions offense

While I'm singling out Harrison Wallace III for this, it could really come down to the Penn State receiving corps as a whole. The wide receiver group registered fewer catches from Drew Allar in this game than the Notre Dame secondary. That is to say, the Nittany Lions receivers finished the Orange Bowl without registering a single reception (and to make it look worse, Wallace finished with negative-three yards "receiving" because of the final lateral play).

The wide receiver room has been an issue for Penn State, not just this season, but for a couple of years now. Having said that, we're putting Wallace in the unfortunate spotlight of being blamed because he was often the exception to that. He was by far the leading wide receiver on the Nittany Lions this season and their pass-catcher to beat man coverage on the outside. Furthermore, this should've been a matchup for him to shine with a largely unproven Fighting Irish secondary playing these games without star corner Benjamin Morrison due to a hip injury.

So for Wallace to have quite literally zero impact on this game is beyond brutal. Penn State still managed to move the ball, sure. However, there's a chance that this game might not have even been close if the PSU receivers were able to separate, win their matchups, and create a bit more of a dominant offensive performance.

1. Drew Allar showed why he needs to return to Penn State in 2025

Drew Allar is immensely talented. Drew Allar could be one of the best quarterbacks in college football in the 2025 season. But he also proved in the Orange Bowl that he made the absolute right call to return to Penn State next year instead of foregoing his eligibility to enter the NFL Draft.

The obvious reason to blame Allar came in the final minutes of the game with a truly back-breaking interception that set up the game-winning field goal for Notre Dame. He seemed to panic a bit under pressure, made a late throw over the middle, and the Irish picked it off. That's Quarterbacking 101 that you can't make that type of throw, but especially not in that moment with your season on the line.

Having said that, such a mistake from Allar had been brewing all night. The Nittany Lions quarterback had two previous balls that ended up in the arms of Notre Dame defenders nullified by Fighting Irish penalties. He was loose, he was careless, and the moment often seemed to be getting to him — in addition, of course, to Al Golden's defense also getting to him.

While Allar didn't get any help from his receivers, his final line of 13-of-23 for 135 yards with no touchdowns really says it all. The potential is as high as it's ever been but he needed to live up to that on Thursday in order to get Penn State in the National Championship Game. He wasn't ready to do that and, while that shouldn't dim his future prospects for both the Nittany Lions and as a pro, it certainly makes his return to Happy Valley seem like the unquestionably right decision.