Penn State Football begins the defining stretch of its season with arguably its most daunting task to date; beating USC, following a cross-country flight to Los Angeles.
Big Ten teams have struggled mightily so far this season when traveling coast-to-coast, but head coach James Frnaklin’s Nittany Lions aim to stay unbeaten and keep this season’s College Football Playoff hopes alive with a victory over the Trojans.
Here are our picks and predictions for Saturday’s Big Ten clash.
Penn State Football vs. USC Picks, Predictions
Robert Casturo, Senior Content Editor
Penn State’s advantage in the running game is too much for the Trojans to overcome.
With USC giving up on average 5 yards per carry this season, Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen both find the endzone for Penn State en route to a close win. Miller Moss will give Penn State’s passing defense headaches early, but Penn State’s pass rush will settle in to help the Nittany Lions get pivotal stops late to seal the win.
The Pick: Penn State 31, USC 21
Brad Kulp, Penn State Football Reporter
Miller Moss is as talented as they come at the QB position for USC. But his average throwing time is 2.4 seconds.
Combined the last two games, Moss has been sacked and/or pressured 40+ times. That’s astronomical.
USC head coach Lincoln Riley will do things to make plays to give his QB time, but that will only get you so far.
It’s impossible to allow deep plays to develop with a 2.4-second window. USC will find that and find intermittent success Saturday, but the Penn State defense is real, especially the frontmen. And they will make it extremely tough on the USC QB to get into any kind of rhythm.
Penn State offense just needs to play smart, run the ball well and take care of business. The Nittany Lions break the West coast travel curse. Penn State rushes for three touchdowns and gets one through the air from Drew Allar, with two field goals for good measure and to build some confidence for everyone. The USC offense will strike, randomly.
The Pick: Penn State 34, USC 24
Daniel Fisher, Penn State Football Reporter
Penn State Football will see what Big Ten football on the West Coast is all about when it plays USC, but the Nittany Lions shouldn’t have an issue.
Last week, USC went to Minnesota and showed that they are less physical than what we saw in the first week of the season against LSU. Penn State is one of the toughest teams in college football on both sides of the ball, and the defense should get after the Trojans’ starting quarterback, Miller Moss, who has struggled against good defenses this season. The Nittany Lions should be able to run the ball, control the line of scrimmage, and win putting themselves at the top of the Big Ten with whoever wins the Ohio State vs. Oregon matchup on Saturday night.
The Pick: Penn State 27, USC 17
Chris Snyder, Senior Penn State Wrestling Reporter
I wasn’t scared when it was announced that USC (along with Oregon, UCLA, and Washington) were going to join the B1G back in June 2022. And I wasn’t scared when USC went 8-5 last season with the 2022 Heisman Trophy winner and the overall No. 1 NFL draft pick at QB.
So I certainly shouldn’t be scared of Penn State’s game this Saturday against the Trojans, right?
But in all honesty, I am.
A little bit.
Because here’s the reality, the CFP expansion from four teams to 12 teams potentially helps Penn State more than any other program in D1 football. However, with how the AP Poll voters have voted so far this year, it appears they are hell-bent on packing the top 12 with as many SEC teams as humanly possible (Bama only dropping six spots after losing to unranked Vandy and the Vols only dropping a laughable four spots after losing to unranked Arkansas). And yes, I do understand the CFP Committee is independent of the AP Poll, but you would be an idiot to not believe they aren’t influenced by it.
So here’s my overall point. Penn State’s only shot to make the field of 12 teams this year hinges on the fact they lose just one game during the regular season. And the last time I checked, Ohio State is still on the schedule.
So if Andy Kotelnicki has any wrinkles he has yet to deploy with the offense, now is the time to use them. The Nittany Lions defense has already exceeded my expectations for this season, but I have a feeling the offense will need to step up on Saturday to knock off USC.
The Pick: Penn State Football 34, USC 30
Evan Smith, Senior Penn State Basketball Reporter
In what has to be considered the first true unknown game of the 2024 season, intrigue is high as a victory guarantees a top-3 ranking in next week’s AP Poll.
We all know what happened last time Penn State played USC. If Andy Kotelnicki has been holding back on offense, now the time to #unleashtheAllar. If you believe he’s the real deal, Penn State wins. I think I do … therefore …
The Pick: Penn State 27, USC 19
MORE: James Franklin’s Big Opportunity To Change the Narrative around Penn State
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He has been recognized for his work as a photographer and has also contributed to various publications including PennLive and The Weather Channel.
Brad is an Air Force veteran, coach and competitive runner that grew up a Nittany Lions fan as his family is originally from the State College area.
His diverse skillset and experiences provide for interesting perspectives on the college football, and sports topics of the day.
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