Penn State Football will have a tricky Big Ten schedule, hosting Ohio State and Washington and then going on the road to play USC and Wisconsin.
The good news is that the Nittany Lions do not have to face Oregon or Michigan in the regular season, so Penn State and its fans caught a break there, but they didn’t catch a break with their non-conference regular season schedule.
To start the year, the Nittany Lions will travel to Morgantown, West Virginia, to take on the Mountaineers on Saturday, August 31st.
The game is expected to be great, and Jesse Simonton from On3.com ranked his top-10 non-conference games of the 2024 season and has this matchup at number six.
“While the Backyard Brawl is a more venomous rivalry,” Simonton writes. “These two neighbors don’t share a lot of love, either, and WVU will look to get a bit of revenge after getting waxed at Penn State last season. The Mountaineers are at home this time, and might actually have the better quarterback between Garrett Greene and Drew Allar. West Virginia is looking to continue its momentum after winning nine games in 2023 — but to do so means Neal Brown hit right on a slew of defensive portal additions. The same can be said for Penn State’s latest offensive coordinator. How quickly can Andy Kotelnicki put his fingerprints on a spotty offense?”
West Virginia finished with a record of 9-4 last season and is expected to be one of the better teams in the Big 12 this year. The Mountaineers are also looking to revenge a loss against Penn State last season, when they went into Happy Valley and got smoked 38-15.
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Why Penn State Football’s Opener is Fascinating
Penn State needs to win this game in a bad way because you can’t drop the first game of the season and expect to make the playoffs even in a new 12-team format, and if West Virginia is also battling for a playoff spot at the end, they will have the advantage over you.
If the Nittany Lions beat the Mountaineers, it’s a solid resume builder. They can afford to lose a game to Ohio State and still make the playoffs.
Many college football teams start the season off playing small schools, but Penn State doesn’t get to have that advantage this year, and they will have a test right off the jump.
MORE: Penn State’s Critical Position Battles to Watch During Fall Camp
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