Penn State Likely Foe for Holiday : College Football: Nittany Lions have an agreement to play Western Athletic Conference champion, sources say.

Penn State will play in the Holiday Bowl against the Western Athletic Conference champion, sources familiar with the bowl pairings said Monday.

Official bids cannot be extended until Nov. 25, but the sources said the Holiday Bowl has an unofficial agreement with Penn State to play in the Dec. 29 bowl at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium.

Officials from the Holiday Bowl and Penn State, citing National Collegiate Athletic Assn. rules, said they would not comment before the official selection date. But only an unexpected change of events could upset the pairing, the sources said.

The opponent for the No. 17 Nittany Lions (6-2-1) has not been determined, but No. 21 Brigham Young has the inside track to the WAC title and the conference’s automatic Holiday Bowl berth. The Cougars (8-2, 5-1) can clinch their first Holiday Bowl appearance since 1984 by beating Utah Saturday and San Diego State Nov. 25 in their final two games.

The Aztecs (6-3-1, 4-2) are one of three teams that have a chance at the conference title should BYU falter. The others are Air Force (7-3, 4-1) and No. 24 Hawaii (8-2, 5-2).

As late as last week, sources said, Penn State likely was headed to the Hall of Fame Bowl in Tampa, Fla., but that scenario changed Saturday when the Nittany Lions were tied by Maryland, 13-13. The Hall of Fame Bowl, concerned that with games remaining Saturday against No. 1 Notre Dame and Nov. 25 at No. 19 Pittsburgh the Nittany Lions could finish 6-4-1, turned its attention to No. 22 Ohio State as a likely opponent for No. 11 Auburn.

That brought the Holiday Bowl into the picture. The Holiday Bowl, which will pay a record $1 million per team, had unsuccessfully pursued Penn State in the past and has scouted them extensively this year. The Nittany Lions were one of the preferred choices to meet Brigham Young in 1984 in what turned out to be the national championship game, but at 6-5, Penn State elected not to go to a bowl that year. BYU went on to defeat Michigan, 24-17, to finish 13-0.

The Nittany Lions, even if they lose their last two games to finish 6-4-1, are an attractive team, bowl sources said, because of their strong fan following and their position as the biggest television draw in the populous Northeast. The Holiday Bowl recently extended its contract with ESPN to televise the game through 1993.

The selection of Penn State also gives the Holiday Bowl an opportunity for the second consecutive year to spotlight the player who professional scouts generaly agree is the top running back in the country. The Nittany Lions are led by Blair Thomas, who has rushed for 1,077 yards after coming back from reconstructive knee surgery that sidelined him last season.

Last year the game featured Heisman Trophy winner Barry Sanders of Oklahoma State, who rushed for a Holiday Bowl-record five touchdowns in a 62-14 victory over Wyoming.

Penn State also boasts one of the strongest defenses in the country. The Nittany Lions have allowed 83 points in nine games, an average of 9.3 per game. The most points they have yielded was in a 17-16 loss to No. 4 Alabama three weeks ago in which their attempt for a winning field goal was blocked in the final seconds. That ended a five-game winning streak that began after a 14-6 loss to Virginia in their opener.