Penn State and Illinois 9OT marathon not quite what NCAA had in mind with new format

The NCAA put into place a brand new system for college football overtime this season, and it was put to the test Saturday afternoon in Beaver Stadium. Penn State and Illinois played an FBS record nine overtimes under the new format, and few outside of the Illini faithful feel the new rule accomplished what the NCAA was hoping to accomplish.

As a refresher, in case you weren’t glued to the TV for the Illini’s shocking nine overtime stunner in Happy Valley, teams no longer play full overtime possessions in college football after the second overtime. Teams are required to go for two points after a touchdown in the second overtime, and teams then alternate one-play two-point attempts beginning with the third overtime until a winner can be determined.

After the game, Penn State head coach James Franklin was asked for his opinion on the new format. As could be expected, Franklin wasn’t necessarily the biggest fan of the new format after coaching through it for the first time and ending up on the losing side of the marathon.

“I think the model was to limit these types of games and try to end it. I don’t know if obviously, this is a good representation of that because it didn’t do that today.”

Under the new format, Penn State and Illinois combined for 14 additional plays from the third to ninth overtime. That could arguably have been close to the snap count of playing a third full overtime under the previous format. Penn State and Illinois combined for 12 plays in the first overtime and 11 plays in the second overtime, for a frame of reference. Instead, inept offenses got to alternate two-point attempts for six overtimes until someone found a way not to lose.

The new overtime format certainly isn’t to blame for Penn State losing the game, and perhaps nine overtimes will be a rarity in college football. But after witnessing the new format put to the max, there will be plenty of opinions on whether or not this new NCAA overtime format has really addressed the concerns of lengthy college football overtimes.

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