Penn State football will ease into Sean Clifford era vs. Idaho
Penn State football enters Week 1 with some new names headlining its offense. How many points will the Nittany Lions put up against the Vandals?
Heading into the 2019 campaign, the Nittany Lions have question marks on the offensive side of the ball, and while the Idaho Vandals are not the strongest opponent, Penn State will look to provide clarity on the direction their offense is going in the opening game.
One of those questions was answered just a week ago as they named Sean Clifford their starting quarterback.
On the other side of the ball, the Nittany Lions’ defense looks to be the strong point of this Penn State team. The front-seven, led by Micah Parsons and Yetur Gross-Matos, is one of the best in the country and their secondary returns all but one starter. While the offense should be fine, the defense looks to make its name known.
For the Vandals, they enter their second season removed from the FBS and hope to muster up some fight in this Week 1 match up.
Here’s how you can watch Saturday’s game between Penn State and Idaho:
Date: Saturday, Aug. 31
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
Location: University, Penn.
Venue: Beaver Stadium
TV: Big Ten Network
Live Stream: BTN2Go | FuboTV
Keys to Victory
This should not be a hard one to explain. Barring a complete meltdown, the Nittany Lions should run away with this one. While wide receiver, KJ Hamler, is an X-factor in every game this season, the Nittany Lions should look to get some of the other receivers involved, as well as getting running back Ricky Slade going as he enters his first year as the starter.
The Vandals will need all the lucky charms and more to upset the Nittany Lions. Force turnovers and avoid turnovers will be the motto heading into Saturday.
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Prediction
The Nittany Lions are a dark-horse team to make the College Football Playoff, and will dominate the Vandals in every aspect of their matchup. Slade, Hamler and Clifford all have big games and the defense makes its presence known throughout the course of the game. Idaho is able to get on the board, but not in the end zone.
Final: Idaho 3, Penn State 55