Football coaches, perhaps more than other sports, are huge proponents of structure, routine, consistent messaging.

Since the early days of his time in Happy Valley, Penn State’s James Franklin has adhered to the philosophy of 1-0.

Yes, it’s a cliche. One day at a time, one play at a time, one game at a time — a mantra heard across the sports world almost daily.

Franklin’s players have bought into it wholeheartedly, pushing the program to new heights and farther away from a scandal that threatened to pull the program under.

“I wouldn’t say it’s overly unique, but I’m a big believer in being present,” Franklin said after Tuesday night’s Fiesta Bowl. “For a lot of our guys, it’s helpful when things are going crazy, they’re being pulled in a thousand directions and you can take a deep breath and focus on, whether it’s 1-0 or our core values.”

Franklin’s philosophy has been on point through the first two rounds of the College Football Playoff.

No. 6 seed Penn State (13-2) opened with a blowout win over SMU in front of a deafening home crowd and kept rolling through the quarterfinals, overpowering No. 8 Boise State for a 31-14 win in the Fiesta Bowl.

That’s 1-0 twice.

The Fiesta Bowl win earned the Nittany Lions a spot in the Jan. 9 Orange Bowl against the winner between No. 2 Georgia and No. 3 Notre Dame in a Sugar Bowl pushed back to today due to the deadly New Orleans truck attack on New Year’s Eve.

The other CFP semifinal — in the Cotton Bowl on Jan. 10 — will feature No. 6 Ohio State against No. 3 Texas.

“At this point in the season, you’re going to play really good people and we’re excited about that opportunity,” Franklin said.

Penn State has become a really good team under Franklin in a long climb from under the shadow of the Jerry Sandusky child sexual abuse scandal that sent the late revered coach Joe Paterno into exile and put a massive stain on a program that had been a standard bearer for college football.

Franklin steadily rebuilt the Nittany Lions with consistent messaging and attention to detail that’s culminated in three straight New Year’s Six bowls.

Penn State reached the CFP for the first time this year behind a team that’s as complete as any in the country.

The defense has been dominant, ranking among the top 10 nationally in several categories. The Nittany Lions made life difficult for Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty in the Fiesta Bowl, holding the Heisman Trophy runner-up to a season-low 104 yards on 30 carries, just 3.5 yards per carry — half his season average.

“We knew who we were going against. We knew we had to have hats to the ball every single play because every play he could break one,” said Penn State safety Zakee Wheatley, who had an interception and recovered a fumble. “We did that the whole game.”

Penn State’s offense has been well-balance all season.

The Nittany Lions may not have a back like Jeanty, but the combination of Kaytron Allen and Nick Singleton proved two is better than one Heisman Trophy finalist — at least for one night. They combined for 1,820 yards and 16 touchdowns before the Fiesta Bowl and were key cogs in the win over Boise State.

Allen ran for 135 yards and Singleton had a spirit-crushing 58-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.

Tyler Warren won the John Mackey Award as the nation’s best tight end and had a massive imprint on the Fiesta Bowl, catching two touchdown passes.

Then there’s Drew Allar.

Penn State’s quarterback faced criticism all season, yet kept winning. He was sharp most of the night at the Fiesta Bowl, throwing three touchdowns into ultra-tight windows.

“We played a complete game — offense, defense, and special teams, complementary football,” Franklin said. “Did some special things tonight.”

They’ve been doing it all season long, winning the 1-0 game 13 times — and counting.

Dart’s final college game comes in Gator Bowl

Jaxson Dart never considered skipping Ole Miss’ bowl game.

Not after the Rebels were eliminated from College Football Playoff contention, and not after Dart announced he was leaving school early to enter the NFL draft.

Now, the first-team, All-Southeastern Conference quarterback will suit up for the 16th-ranked Rebels (9-3) one last time — in the Gator Bowl against seemingly overmatched Duke (9-3) tonight.

“There wasn’t any doubt,” Dart said. “Never even had a second thought about it. I’m just really excited to go compete one more time with the guys.”

Dart started his college journey at USC and landed with coach Lane Kiffin in Oxford as a sophomore in 2022. He’s been a three-year starter for the Rebels who has thrown for 10,213 yards, with 68 TDs and 22 INTs. He has 12 rushing scores.

Kiffin wasn’t surprised to see Dart finish out the season in Jacksonville.

“It’s just who he is, an unbelievable leader, teammate, friend to these guys,” Kiffin said. “I think of him as another son to me. He’s just been awesome. To see him grow and see how he treats people, it’s just amazing. I’m really proud of him.”

Mississippi, which is trying to reach double-digit wins in consecutive years for the second time in school history and the first time since 1959-60, is a 17 1/2-point favorite, according to BetMGM Sportsbook. The transfer portal had a lot to do with the line.

The Blue Devils, who won three in a row to end the regular season, will be without two key starters: quarterback Maalik Murphy and running back Star Thomas. Murphy, Thomas and backup quarterback Grayson Loftis entered the portal.

Murphy set Duke’s single-season record with 26 touchdown passes. Thomas led the team with 871 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground. With Murphy and Loftis gone, Henry Belin IV will start. Belin completed his only pass this season and ran five times for 23 yards.

Belin won his lone start, a 24-3 victory against North Carolina State in 2023. He completed 4 of 12 passes for 107 yards, with two TDs and an interception.