When Penn State was awarded the No. 6 seed in the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff, it was obvious that the Nittany Lions had one of the easiest paths to the CFP semifinals. James Franklin’s team easily dispatched SMU in the first round with a 38-10 at Beaver Stadium and now they’re over 10 point favorites in the quarterfinal matchup with Mountain West Champion and No. 3 seed Boise State.
However, it’s not just the current path that’s so favorable for Penn State, it’s also history that’s on its side. The Nittany Lions critically drew Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl, a game that both programs have had plenty of success in, though no program in the history of the sport has been better in the Fiesta Bowl than Penn State.
Penn State Fiesta Bowl history
The Nittany Lions are 7-0 in the Fiesta Bowl all-time with their 1987 Fiesta Bowl win over No. 1 Miami clinching the second and most recent national championship in program history. Penn State last played in the Fiesta Bowl in 2017, a 35-28 win over Washington to finish the year 11-2. Penn State has the most wins in Fiesta Bowl history and the second most appearances behind Ohio State with nine.
The Nittany Lions won the 1987 Fiesta Bowl 14-10 over the Hurricanes and intercepted Heisman Trophy winner Vinny Testaverde five times including the clincher from Pete Giftopoulos on fourth-and-goal with nine seconds remaining. Running back D.J. Dozier was the game’s offensive MVP and linebacker Shane Conlan won defensive MVP.
Boise State Fiesta Bowl history
While Penn State has the best Fiesta Bowl record of any program, Boise State is tied for the third-most wins of any program behind the Nittany Lions and Buckeyes and has the second-best undefeated record at 3-0.
In 2006, former head coach Chris Peterson’s first season at the helm in Boise, the Broncos capped off a 13-0 season with a 43-42 win over Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl. It was the program’s first New Year’s Six Bowl appearance and it came just 11 years after making the jump to the FBS level. Three years later in 2009, Boise State finished 14-0 with a 17-10 Fiesta Bowl win over No. 3 TCU. 2014 was Boise State’s most recent Fiesta Bowl appearance, a 38-30 win over Arizona.