MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – Sadness and grief filled the air inside the Penn State locker room late Thursday night. Tears flowed from brawny young men, who tried to console each other with long embraces. Moments earlier, Penn State’s dream of winning a national championship had died with a last-second 27-24 loss to Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl. Jaylen Reed tried to talk, but emotions overwhelmed him. He sat down, took a few deep breaths and described what had happened in the College Football Playoff semifinal, his final game as a Penn State safety. “We made mistakes at critical times,” Reed said. “It’s playoff football. The margin of error is serious.” The most grievous error came with 33 seconds left when Drew Allar looked left, turned right and threw a late pass for Omari Evans that a diving Christian Gray intercepted at the Nittany Lions’ 42-yard line. A few plays later, Mitch Jeter kicked a 41-yard field goal to send the Fighting Irish to the title game and Penn State into a winter of discontent. “I was just trying to throw it at his feet,” Allar said, “but I should have just thrown it away. The first two progressions (receivers) weren’t open. I was just trying to throw it at Omari’s feet, but just didn’t execute what I was trying to do.” Allar struggled against Notre Dame’s elite secondary, completing just 12-of-23 passes for 135 yards. Overall, he had a very good season and played well in close wins over USC and Minnesota. Against the Irish and Ohio State, though, he couldn’t deliver. His teammates had his back. “I love Drew,” defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton said. “I don’t really care what other people have to say. I know what he does and what he’s capable of. He didn’t lose us this game. The defense allowed way too many points.” The Lions intercepted two Riley Leonard passes and nearly came up with a third turnover when Leonard fumbled. But the defense couldn’t protect a seven-point lead in the fourth quarter. Notre Dame was successful on third down (11-for-17); Penn State was not (3-for-11). The Irish found several mismatches in the passing game; the Lions did not. Their wide receivers failed to catch a single pass, continuing their season-long lack of production. “Yeah, that’s a storyline of the game,” Penn State coach James Franklin said. “I don’t think there’s any doubt about it. Early on we had some throws, tightly contested balls that we didn’t come down with. Give them (the Irish) credit.” It was a bitter loss for Franklin, who fell to 1-15 against top-five opponents. He didn’t make a glaring mistake, a decision that left heads scratching. It was an outstanding season that included Penn State’s first playoff appearance, first two playoff wins, first appearance in the Big Ten title game since 2016 and a school-record 13 wins. The Lions’ three losses came against top-five opponents, all by eight points or less. Against Notre Dame, they showed character in regaining the lead with two fourth-quarter touchdowns. They couldn’t hold it. Instead of Franklin becoming the first Black head coach in the national championship game, it will be the Irish’s Marcus Freeman. “Most importantly, I wanted it for the guys in the locker room and the staff,” Franklin said. “As you can imagine, there are a thousand different emotions and feelings going on. As the head coach, I’ve got to put on the right face for what they need right now and for my family.” Penn State proved it belonged in the semifinals and that it is one of the top teams in the country. That was little consolation inside that locker room, though. “The sun will come up tomorrow,” Franklin said. “I want to make sure that all those guys walk out of that locker room with their heads high and their chests out because they have a ton to be proud of. “There are about 128 teams that would give their right arm to have the season that we just had this year. It doesn’t feel that way right now.”