Get ready for Penn State’s showdown against Ohio State with rosters, picks and previews

The No. 13 Penn State football team has a big challenge ahead of it this week when Ohio State comes to town.

The No. 2 Buckeyes (7-0., 4-0) are playing just their second road game of the season and are coming off a 54-10 home win against Iowa last week. Ohio State has been perfect in the red zone this season, with scores on all 36 trips including 31 touchdowns. Not surprisingly, the Buckeyes are No. 1 in scoring in the Big Ten with 347 points this season.

The matchup will serve as the Stripe Out for Penn State (6-1, 3-1) and will air at noon on Fox. This is the 30th consecutive year the teams have faced each other, going back to the Nittany Lions’ entry into the Big Ten. It’s the 38th game overall in the series, which began in 1912. Ohio State leads the series 23-14 and is 9-6 at Beaver Stadium. The Buckeyes have won the past five games against the Nittany Lions, including last year’s contest in Columbus, 33-24.

Penn State head coach James Franklin is looking to improve his 1-7 mark against Ohio State while the Buckeyes’ Ryan Day hopes to keep his record — 3-0 — perfect against the Nittany Lions

Saturday’s game marks the first time the teams will play each other in the noon window since 2001. The big-game early kick has its detractors, but Fox’s marquee timeslot does offer this perk for fans: The network will broadcast the “Big Noon Kickoff” pregame show from Penn State for the first time. The show, which airs from 10 a.m. to noon, will set up camp outside Gate B of the Bryce Jordan Center. The festivities start at 7 a.m. when the free “Big Noon Kickoff“ Fan Area opens. Fans can win prizes during the show, as well as get free food and see celebrity guests and live music, Fox says.

The game will, naturally, be called by Fox’s top crew of Gus Johnson, Joel Klatt and Jenny Taft.

Week 9 game picks

The CDT’s crew of game pickers bounced back with a successful week as everyone finished at or above .500. Nate Cobler and Andrew Buckman led the group with eight winning picks.

Overall, Josh Moyer remains in the lead with 55 wins in 80 games this season.

This week, the group made six unanimous picks, including Ohio State over Penn State, Michigan over Michigan State and Illinois over Nebraska.

The complete slate of picks is below.

What to know before kickoff

ICYMI: Big Ten releases 2023 schedule

Conference previews: Big Ten | Big 12 | SEC | ACC | Pac-12

Around the conferences: SEC field-storming | Big Ten defenses | Big 12 QB attrition

Team check-ins: Iowa | Nebraska | South Carolina | Georgia

What to watch | How bad can it get?

Games to watch

Here’s a look at the rest of Saturday’s Big Ten matchups, plus other notable games. Indiana, Maryland, Purdue and Wisconsin have byes.

Notre Dame at Syracuse, noon (ABC)

Rutgers at Minnesota, 2:30 p.m. (BTN)

Illinois at Nebraska, 3:30 p.m. (ABC)

Northwestern at Iowa, 3:30 p.m. (ESPN2)

Florida at Georgia, 3:30 p.m. (CBS)

Oklahoma State at Kansas State, 3:30 p.m. (Fox)

Wake Forest at Louisville, 3:30 p.m. (ACC)

Kentucky at Tennessee, 7 p.m. (ESPN)

Michigan State at Michigan, 7:30 p.m. (ABC)

Ole Miss at Texas A&M, 7:30 p.m. (SEC)

Pittsburgh at North Carolina, 8 p.m. (ACC)

Penn State roster

Here is the Nittany Lions’ roster. Scroll down for the Ohio State roster.

Ohio State roster

The Buckeyes’ roster is below.

Schedule/results

Here’s a look at Penn State’s results this season and the upcoming schedule.