Under normal circumstances, the current weather in University Park, Texas, seems quite favorable for conducting football practice or any sort of strenuous activity.
But as the SMU Mustangs have been enjoying sunny skies and temperatures in the 60s this week, an awareness exists that conditions are about to change drastically when the team travels to Happy Valley on Saturday for its first-round College Football Playoff game vs. Penn State.
While forecasts for Saturday at Beaver Stadium project temperatures in the mid-20s, coach Rhett Lashlee is not cowering in fear of the cold as a competitive advantage for the Nittany Lions.
“Here’s the deal: They’re playing in the same weather we are,” he said. “They’ve got to play in it like we do, and I don’t think they’ve played a game on Dec. 21 at home before either. I don’t think the weather’s a big deal. Both teams are playing in the same conditions, whether it’s snow or not snow, whether it’s really cold or just kind of cold. It is what it is.”
Lashlee thought his players performed fine in the ACC championship game in Charlotte, N.C., as it pertains to the weather.
Granted, SMU lost 34-31 to Clemson, but, overall, Lashlee didn’t see the weather as having played any role.
“I don’t think weather was an issue in Charlotte. It was around 35-37 (degrees) when the weather ended, and I think our guys handled it great,” Lashlee. “This is going to be different. It’ll probably be 25 or somewhere around there. I don’t really know.”
Penn State offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki offered a divergent opinion on the weather.
Inside the Nittany Lions’ program, players and coaches are looking at it as being a significant factor Saturday.
If Lashlee does have a point about how, at the end of the day, Penn State has to deal with the game-time temperatures as SMU, Kotelnicki pointed out that his team at least is able to better brace for it.
“You practice in it. It just starts there,” Kotelnicki said. “… It’s about knowing we prepare in this stuff all the time. We’re fortunate enough to have a home game, so we absolutely think it’s an advantage because we prepare in it all the time. It’s hard to mimic what you see outside right now today, for sure. So I do think it’s an advantage.”
The debate among opposing coaches aside, Penn State defensive tackle Zane Durant is sure of one thing: a full-speed football game in the cold featuring the cracking of pads is not something to take lightly.
“My first cold game, I was struggling out there, man, so I had to get used to it,” Durant said. “I (now) know what to do, the little secrets and stuff to play in it, but it’s a factor, for sure. … You just got to know the ins and outs. It’s going to hurt regardless, so it’s kind of a mental thing that you’ve got to get used to. The first time you go into it, you’re not aware of that.”
Lashlee knows the weather is not the only component in making Beaver Stadium a difficult place to play.
There will also be the legions of Nittany Lions fans, ready to be loud and form a sea of white in the stands.
“There’s really nothing you can do to prepare for it,” Lashlee said. “You’ve just got to get there, adjust to it and go compete. We’re doing all the normal things you try to do to prepare, but, obviously, it’s a huge home-field advantage, and that’s why (Penn State) earned the right to be at home.”
Whether because of its No. 6 CFP seed and SMU being ranked 11th — or any perceived advantages of playing at home in the cold — Penn State is not allowing overconfidence to cloud preparations.
Seeing how the Mustangs nearly clawed their way out of a hole vs. Clemson to win the ACC title, the Nittany Lions fully expect to battle a formidable opponent.
“Football, it’s not boxing. It’s a four-quarter game,” center Nick Dawkins said. “You can’t just win one punch, then it’s a knockout and over. We’re always prepared to play four quarters. (SMU) is a good a team, obviously, in the College Football Playoff. A lot of respect for those guys, especially up front on the defensive line. They’re a good team. (We’re) prepared to go the distance with these guys. They’re definitely going to bring it.”
