Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

Kirk Herbstreit Reacts to SMU’s Embarrassing Performance vs. Penn State

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Austin Boyd | Last updated Dec 21, 2024 1:58 PM ET

It's been a rough start to the College Football Playoff for non-traditional football powers. Indiana got outclassed in a 27-17 Friday loss to Notre Dame and now SMU is putting together a brutal performance against Penn State.

At halftime, the Mustangs were down 28-0 against the Nittany Lions. Penn State has an incredible home crowd and the fans have been doing their part in ensuring SMU doesn't get into a rhythm at Beaver Stadium.

There's been a lot of argument about whether or not teams like SMU and Indiana should've gotten playoff spots over teams like Miami and Alabama due to strength of schedule.

Longtime college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit has been vocal about how Alabama should've gotten into the playoff over SMU and he's feeling some vindication.

Amid the Penn State blowout, Herbstreit called out SMU's embarrassing performance on X and said he "tried to warn em" about the Mustangs being overmatched against such a strong home crowd.

Tried to warn em about (not the weather) but the challenge of the atmosphere and crowd!
1st half offense
128 total yards
1-6 3rd down 0-2 4th down
69 yards passing with 3 int’s 2 pick 6’s
It’s not these boys fault-just not ready for this! This game is unfortunately about to…
— Kirk Herbstreit (@KirkHerbstreit) December 21, 2024

Unless SMU can have a historic second-half turnaround, the fans and pundits who believe Alabama should've gotten into the playoffs will have a strong argument next year when the playoff spots are being selected. SMU is clearly outmatched against a more traditional powerhouse football program like Penn State.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: