With a Fiesta Bowl win over Boise State in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals, the Penn State Nittany Lions are finally on to the CFP semis. The four-team CFP eluded James Franklin across the first 10 years of his tenure in Happy Valley, but he’s 2-0 in the inaugural 12-team CFP format and will face Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl for a spot in the national championship game.
This will be the sixth time Penn State is playing in the Orange Bowl, and the Nittany Lions have a great history in the game, though not quite as good as their now 8-0 record in the Fiesta Bowl. Penn State has not played in the Orange Bowl since a 26-23 win over Florida State to end the 2005 season on January 3, 2006. Michael Robinson threw for 253 yards and a touchdown to lead the No. 3 ranked Nittany Lions to an 11-1 season. That victory brought the program to 4-1 all-time in the Orange Bowl, all under Joe Paterno.
The other three wins came in 1968, 1969, and 1973, all to finish undefeated seasons but none as the national champions.
Prior to the 2006 Orange Bowl, Penn State’s last appearance under Paterno capped off another 11-1 season in 1985, one year prior to the program’s second national championship. However, it was not as celebratory as the 2006 contest. The No. 1 Nittany Lions fell to No. 3 Oklahoma 25-10 on January 1, 1986, as the Sooners claimed the national title.
On the other side, this will also be Notre Dame’s sixth Orange Bowl appearance in program history. The Fighting Irish enter at 2-3 with their most recent Orange Bowl win in 1989 under Lou Holtz, a year after winning the national championship. Notre Dame has not appeared in the Orange Bowl since 1995.
