Penn State football will be on upset alert in season opener at Indiana

With a date against Ohio State one week away, Penn State will look to start the shortened season off with a strong start at Indiana.

After a chaotic offseason, Big Ten football finally returns this weekend with several programs charting their course to the conference championship game in Indianapolis.

After a rise through the polls, Penn State heads to Bloomington ranked eight nationally with a goal of cracking into the College Football Playoff. Meanwhile, the Hoosiers look to build off a strong 2019 season with a difficult slate of Big Ten East games on the horizon.

While Penn State football owns a 22-1 all-time record against Indiana, Tom Allen’s program has pushed the Nittany Lions deep into the fourth quarter in their most recent matchups. Penn State capitalized on a late score last year in State College to hold onto a 34-17 win. The 2018 matchup in Indiana led to a back and forth, scrappy affair with the Nittany Lions holding on for a five-point win.

Penn State entered the week as a 6.5-point favorite, however, Franklin’s staff knows Indiana is not the typical season opening pushover. Indiana has out-gained Penn State by a combined 1,016-788 yards in the past two matchups and Allen’s offense been very successful throwing through the Penn State secondary.

An early deficit could prove difficult for the Lions to overcome on the road.

This game will mark the first time Penn State football opened the season against a Power Five opponent since their 2001 loss against No. 2 Miami. The trip to Indiana will also mark the first time the Lions started the season outside Beaver Stadium since their 2014 win against UCF in Dublin, Ireland. While the “early” season road-trip to Indiana may be unfamiliar territory, Franklin has done well against the Hoosiers with a 6-0 record, including a 4-0 record against Allen.

After an impressive 11-2 record and Cotton Bowl win last season, the Nittany Lions are looking towards the 2020 season as a chance to knock Ohio State out of the Big Ten title game and as a replacement in the playoff.

Meanwhile, Indiana ended a two year postseason absence last year going 8-4 in the regular season. The Hoosiers broke into the College Football Playoff rankings appearing as high as No. 24 before their Gator Bowl loss against Tennessee.

Here’s how you can watch Saturday’s game:

Date: Saturday, Oct. 24
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
Location: Bloomington, Ind.
Venue: Memorial Stadium
TV: FOX Sports 1
Stream: FOX Sports Go

Keys to Victory

Indiana will be led at quarterback by Michael Penix Jr. and is backed by one of the strongest passing offenses in the conference with great options in Ty Fryfogle and Whop Philyor. Penix Jr. missed the Penn State game last season due to injury but was 5-1 as a starter after relieving Peyton Ramsey. Penix Jr.’s dual threat ability, combined with junior running back Stevie Scott III should once again keep a Micah Parsons-less Penn State defense on its toes.

While Indiana has talent and experience at its skill positions, to pull off the upset, the Hoosiers will need a strong performance from an experienced offensive line. The Nittany Lions may be without Parsons or Gross-Matos but have plenty of NFL talent on the edge and have highly recruited underclass talent at linebacker looking to make a name. Penn State will look to put early pressure on Penix Jr.

Offensively, the Nittany Lions will again be led by Sean Clifford but have a new play caller with former Minnesota offensive coordinator taking the reins over from Ricky Rahne. His departure should be seen as a blessing in disguise given recent stagnation in short yardage play calling and development at receiver.

Pat Freiermuth is a first round talent at tight end, but for the Lions to move the ball successfully through the air, one of their young receivers will need to fill the void left by KJ Hamler. Penn State will be without running back Journey Brown but returns highly talented sophomore backs Noah Cain and Devyn Ford.

Prediction

Between an extended offseason, injuries, sit-outs, and a lack of game time, anything could happen in the Big Ten’s return. Indiana has proved difficult to put away under Allen and that once again looks to be the case in Bloomington. Penn State gets off to an early lead after a long pass play but the Nittany Lions won’t feel comfortable until the clock hits 0:00.

Penix Jr. combined with his talented receivers once again keep the Penn State secondary out of breath, but a fourth quarter turnover combined with Noah Cain’s ability to churn out tough yards is enough to get Penn State off to a 1-0 start ahead of a huge primetime game against the Buckeyes next weekend.

Final Score: Penn State 30, Indiana 20