When Ioane, a native of the Seattle area, de-committed from the University of Washington, Collins suggested he speak to Penn State offensive line coach Phil Trautwein. Ioane wound up committing to the Lions in February 2022.

Penn State's offense is thriving under first-year offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki. The Nittany Lions are one of a handful of Power Four schools averaging 200 yards per game rushing and receiving heading into their College Football Playoff quarterfinal against Boise State.

Penn State's first home Playoff game against SMU was a cathartic moment for a program that has hopes of winning even bigger games ahead.

With the Penn State Nittany Lions dominating the SMU Mustangs in their first-round home playoff game, who do they play next? What is their pathway towards playing in the national championship game? Here is what you need to know going forward.

For the first time in program history, Penn State is moving on in the College Football Playoff. The (6) Nittany Lions punched their ticket to a showdown against (3) Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl quarterfinal on Dec. 31 with a dominant 38-10 win against (11) SMU on Saturday.