Joel Klatt broke the Our Lady–State of Pennsylvania match in the College Football Playoffs semi-finals at the Orange Bowl.
In summary, it’s going to be a close match. But Klatt trusts Notre Dame a little more on this one.
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It starts with the head coach Marcus Freeman on James Franklin.
“I think both of those guys are really good coaches,” Klatt said on his podcast. “And I would just say this as if I think at the end of the day, from a choice standpoint, who do you trust? And after the loss at Northern Illinois, I trust Marcus Freeman. Situationally, Notre Dame is very healthy. Look at the way they executed that punt on offense, getting the offside, as if situationally this team understands how to play and execute.
“They also know who they are and rely on that defensively and offensively. They know what they are offensively, and they generally don’t deviate from that.
Klatt argued that Notre Dame doesn’t get in its own way, but Penn State tends to.
“That’s the only question I have about Penn State,” Klatt said. “And that’s why I trust Notre Dame a little more. From a Penn State perspective, I love this team. They are a very, very good team who, sometimes, can get in their way in these matches. Think about it. Now they had first and goal inside the 10 yard line against Ohio State in the fourth quarter in order to go in and tie this game. And all of a sudden the guy who got them there didn’t touch the football, Tyler Warren, did they learn their lesson?
Joel Klatt opts for Notre Dame over Penn State
“It didn’t seem like it when all of a sudden, against Boise State, it was Kaytron Allen going. They’re going to run the football 300 yards, if Kaytron Allen will just keep carrying that ball out of zone. And they moved away from that and became a pass-first team against Boise State that has more sacks than anyone in the country.
Again, it comes down to the trust factor and Klatt opted for Notre Dame over Penn State. Would it surprise the Fox Sports analyst if the game went the other way? No.
But he’s banking on the Fighting Irish.
“I don’t know if Penn State has learned its lesson,” Klatt said. “Why didn’t they win the decisive victory? Because of things like that. Because in these games you cannot always defeat yourself and your opponents. You have to play it correctly. So I’m going to trust Notre Dame in this game. I think it’s going to be tight. I think Notre Dame wins 24-20, I think they cover the 1.5, that’s a little low score, I think it’s going to be a great game and I can’t wait.
