DeLuca’s awareness stems from playing quarterback at Wyoming Area, where he led the Warriors to the PIAA Class 3A championship in 2019 while playing with a torn ACL in his knee.

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

SMU's Kevin Jennings was deep in his own territory and on his back foot, but he airmailed the checkdown right into DeLuca’s hands.

DeLuca’s performance matched the likes of fellow Nittany Lions linebackers Shane Conlan and Pete Giftopoulos, who each had two picks of Miami’s Vinny Testaverde to deliver the program’s last national championship in 1986.

Things have not gone SMU's way in the CFP first-round game on Saturday at Penn State. First, the Mustangs went for it on fourth-and-short. Kevin Jennings had a chance to run for the first down but opted to throw a pass that went for an incompletion after a hard hit