New Photo Exposes Penn State Coach James Franklin For Making The Dumbest Decision With The Game On The Line During Orange Bowl Loss To Notre Dame
Penn State head coach James Franklin (Photo by Megan Briggs/Getty Images)
No. 6 seed Penn State basically had one final chance to try and block a game-winning field goal from Notre Dame kicker Mitch Jeter during their matchup in the College Football Playoff semifinal, and they screwed it up.
The senior kicker would make the biggest kick of his life as he would give the Fighting Irish a 27-24 win in the Capital One Orange Bowl at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens in front of more than 66,000 fans.
PSU head coach James Franklin did not make things any better for his team, and it is all based on his decision to defend the field goal with 12 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter.
Instead of the special teams unit going for an all-out field goal block, the Nittany Lions had nine guys on the line to try and block while two members of Penn State were ready to defend a fake field goal.
Seeing that it was 4th-and-8, there was literally no chance that Notre Dame would try something so shocking with the game on the line.
Penn State Screwed Themselves With Terrible Late-Game Interception
Defensive back Christian Gray is the most loved man right now after his defensive play set his Fighting Irish team up in the final minute of the Orange Bowl.
Penn State quarterback Drew Allar was not at his best in the Orange Bowl against Notre Dame.
With the game tied at 24-24 with under a minute to go, Allar dropped back to pass and fired an errant pass that found the hands of Gray. The turnover gave Notre Dame the ball just about 10 yards away from field goal range.
Mitch Jeter made a 41-yard field goal with seven seconds left to give the Fighting Irish a 27-24 win.
The Irish will play the winner of Friday’s Cotton Bowl featuring Ohio State vs. Texas.
Trade Rumors Are Swirling After Jusuf Nurkic Gets Healthy DNP In Suns’ Win Over Hawks
Jusuf Nurkic (Image Credit: Getty Images)
The Phoenix Suns are desperately trying to improve their record and stay put for a playoff run this season. Coming into their latest game against the Atlanta Hawks, the Suns made some aggressive changes. And it included their starting center, Jusuf Nurki,c from their team. Surprisingly, the move paid off, the Suns won 123-115, inching closer to .500. With the win, the Suns’ record also improved to 17 wins and 19 losses this season.
However, such a decision did not sit well with Nurkic. After initial reports claimed that Nurkic was on the bench despite being perfectly healthy, the Suns’ head coach made another surprising comment. It was assumed that Nurkic was benched due to the matchup. But HC Mike Budenholzer stated that he simply wanted to bench the 30-year-old.
“Yeah, just went with Mason and Oso tonight. Again, just always trying to figure out what’s best for the team and find the right combinations, the right group… We just went with Mason and Oso,” said Budenholzer.
Quite expected, Nurkic seemed frustrated about the entire incident. Speaking on the matter, Nurkic stated, “No comment, man. Just be a pro and get ready. That’s all.” Now, such a situation has sparked trade rumors for Nurkic. While nothing is confirmed yet, it remains to be seen whether the 30-year-old requests for a change of jersey logos. However, this is not the first time the Suns have benched Nurkic.
Phoenix Suns Made A Tough Call Regarding Jusuf Nurkic Previously Too
Jusuf Nurkic has not been in good form recently. Having played 23 matches this season, his per-game average sits at a mere 8.8 points. The 30-year-old has also averaged 1.9 assists and 9.5 rebounds per game, making matters worse. Thus, with his form not looking promising, the Suns’ management decided to drop him against their match with the Philadelphia 76ers.
