Penn State's Dom DeLuca went from walk-on to captain with the Nittany Lions. "You can't help but love Dom," Penn State defensive coordinator Tom Allen said.

No. 6 seed Penn State used two first-half interception returns for touchdowns to jumpstart a 38-10 blowout of No. 11 seed SMU in the first round of the College Football Playoff on Saturday at Beaver Stadium. The Nittany Lions will move on to meet No. 3 seed Boise State in the first Playoff quarterfinal at the Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s Eve.

Dominic DeLuca and Tony Rojas returned interceptions for touchdowns and Penn State toyed with mistake-prone SMU in a 38-10 victory in the opening round of the College Football Playoff.

Beaver Stadium is one of the toughest places to play in around the entirety of college football so the Mustangs will have their hands full. SMU will need to control the crowd before it gets to be too late if they want any chance of pulling the upset.

After Penn State easily dispatched SMU in the first round of the College Football Playoff, the Nittany Lions face off against Boise State on New Year’s Eve in the first quarterfinal matchup before the triple header on New Year’s Day.