Dominic DeLuca has long held the respect of Penn State’s locker room as he finishes out his second season as a team captain. Now the Wyoming Area grad is starting to turn heads of opposing coaches as well.
Two interceptions and a touchdown in a College Football Playoff game will tend to do that.
Heading into Tuesday’s Fiesta Bowl, DeLuca is one of the players that has the attention of third-seeded Boise State and coach Spencer Danielson for the CFP quarterfinal matchup.
“(DeLuca), one of their defensive players, does a phenomenal job on all three (special teams) units,” Danielson said. “We have to know where he is at. And they play their best players on special teams.”
Danielson also has a firsthand account of DeLuca’s impact — the Broncos’ special teams coordinator is Stacy Collins, who had that same role at Penn State in 2022 and 2023.
Special teams is where DeLuca first thrived for the sixth-seeded Nittany Lions (12-2). But it was his play at linebacker last week against SMU that is a major reason why the Lions are three wins away from a national championship.
He became the first Penn State player to ever score in a CFP game when he snagged an overthrown pass and took it back 23 yards for a touchdown. The West Pittston native then thwarted a Mustangs red zone opportunity when he deflected a pass to himself for a second interception — his third in the last four games.
Afterward, DeLuca deflected much of the praise that came his way, wanting the focus to remain on the team. But a week later, Penn State coaches and teammates continue to talk him up in interviews ahead of Tuesday’s quarterfinal.
“I knew me and Dom just had a connection ever since day one,” fellow linebacker Kobe King said. “I just told Dom last week, middle of the game, ‘Dom, I love you, man. You my guy.’ He’s crazy on the field. He’s a great guy to play with.”
King even called him the defense’s version of Tyler Warren, the nation’s top tight end, because of the versatility of both players: “You can put him in any spot, he can do anything and he’ll get the job done.”
Speaking this weekend, DeLuca credited parents Ree Ree and Carl — both former college athletes themselves — for his approach to the game.
“They always told me that you’ve got to be a team player and you’ve got to do what’s best for the team,” DeLuca said. “If that’s being a water boy, I will the best water boy in the country. If they want me to play D-line, I’ll play D-line. If they want me to play safety, I’ll play safety. Just being able to have that relationship with the defense. They understand I’m going to do my job.
“I may not make the play, but I’m happy for my brothers that do make the play. That’s really what it comes down to at the end of the day. As long as we win the game, I’ll do whatever I need to do.”
Though he has made no public statement about his future, Penn State is expecting DeLuca to return for a fifth and final season with the Lions in 2025. The redshirt junior was one of a few dozen players to be honored on senior day last month in case he decided to move on.
According to defensive coordinator Tom Allen, that won’t be the case.
“He’s a great player and a great person. He’s fun to coach and I look forward to having another year with him,” Allen said. “To me, he embodies Penn State football. Tough, hard-nosed kid that loves this place, loves representing his home state and I’m thrilled he’s one of our leaders.”
THREE AND OUT
ALL EYES ON JEANTY
Of far more immediate concern to DeLuca and the Lions is Ashton Jeanty.
The Boise State star is having one of the greatest statistical seasons by a running back in NCAA history at 2,497 yards and 29 touchdowns on the ground.
In 13 games this season, he has yet to be held under 125 yards, and if he gets 132 against Penn State, he will break Barry Sanders’ single-season NCAA record.
Jeanty was the runner-up in Heisman Trophy voting and said afterward he thought he should have been a decisive winner over two-way Colorado star Travis Hunter.
DeLuca said the defense will have to be sharp and sure to wrap up on Jeanty, as missed tackles have been an issue at times this season for the unit.
“Just being able to play as a team is huge for us,” DeLuca said. “Just from a defense perspective, I feel like we just play, do our job at a high level, wrap up, make a tackle — even hold them up and let the gang come, and let the whole team, all 11 players, run to the football.
“That’s going to be huge for us. As long as everyone gets to the football, I think we’ll have a great game.”
Easier said than done. No one has been able to contain Jeanty this season, not even undefeated Oregon, which gave up nearly 200 yards on the ground when the Ducks narrowly beat the Broncos in September.
“Obviously, it all starts and revolves around Jeanty,” Lions coach James Franklin said. “In any other year, I think he wins the Heisman, and you could make the argument that he should have won it this year.
“He’s hard to tackle. He’s compact, 5-10. He has the ability to run away from you, has the ability to make you miss. … I think it starts and ends with the running back and I think they do a really good job of not only getting him the ball in the run game, but also in the pass game. But then also using him in play action pass to create some opportunities to get some explosive plays down the field in the passing game.”
ALLAR BUILDING UP
On the other side of the ball, Penn State didn’t have to do much in the passing game against SMU after the Lions defense forged a 14-0 lead on the way to a 28-0 advantage at halftime.
Quarterback Drew Allar didn’t have one of his sharpest games in frigid, windy conditions. But that won’t be a problem at all on Tuesday, playing indoors at the Arizona Cardinals’ State Farm Stadium.
Allar let it rip in the Lions’ last indoor game for the Big Ten championship, and offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki will likely turn to him again in this one.
“There’s a much greater understanding on his side, for sure, of what we’re doing offensively (from the start of the season),” Kotelnicki said. “We’re game planning, obviously, and how fast that can go and how seamless it can be on a week-to-week basis because of where we’re at.
“His understanding, his mastery of the offense, has grown every week since I’ve been here. Then you get into the season, and that’s continued. He’s at a high level with it.”
Allar topped 3,000 yards on the season in last week’s win and is looking forward to an aggressive plan going forward.
“For me, I think it’s just our mindset at the end of the day,” Allar said. “We’re going out there to play to win, and not playing scared or anything like that. Just sticking to your guns and letting it go when you see it. Playing with speed and winning with speed, winning your one-on-ones. It kind of all correlates itself into just playing to win.”
Allar announced last week that he would return to Penn State for his senior season rather than take his chances in a draft that is not exactly bursting with talent at quarterback.
The Broncos are wary of the impact he can make on the field.
“He’s an NFL-type kid,” Danielson said. “He’s long and can run when the pocket breaks down. They do have some designed runs we have to be ready for, and he can make the big-boy throw. Offensively, they put you in a lot of conflict and we have our work cut out for us.”
RICH HISTORY
One of these programs will suffer their first loss in their favorite bowl game.
It’s easy to argue that the Fiesta Bowl is the site of the most famous victory for both teams. Penn State upset Miami 14-10 to close out the 1986 season with a national championship. Boise State knocked off Oklahoma 43-42 in overtime during the 2006 campaign in one of the most memorable bowl games ever played because of its twists and turns.
As it is, the Lions are 7-0 all-time in the game, with the first six wins coming in Tempe and the most recent at the current site in Glendale, beating Washington 35-28.
Penn State beat Arizona State in the Sun Devils’ home stadium in the 1977 game, winning 42-30. The Lions then won two Fiesta Bowls back-to-back in 1980 and 1981, topping Ohio State 31-19 and USC 26-10, respectively.
After the title win over Miami in 1986, Penn State thumped Tennessee 42-17 in 1991 and overpowered Texas 38-15 to end the 1996 season.
The Broncos made history with their win over the Sooners in their first trip to the Fiesta. They followed it up by edging TCU 17-10 in the 2009 season and also beat Arizona 38-30 in 2014.
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