Penn State at Rutgers predictions: Can the Nittany Lions win a third game in a row?
Penn State is closing in on 10 wins this season and now heads on the road for the final time until its bowl game. The Nittany Lions will take on the Rutgers Scarlet Knights while trying to win a third game in a row. Here are some final thoughts, predictions and analysis ahead of the Nittany Lions’ matchup with the Scarlet Knights Saturday afternoon.
Imposing their will
Penn State should be able to come out and impose its will on Rutgers. The Nittany Lions are significantly better than the Scarlet Knights from almost every standpoint. They have the better offense and the better defense and neither is particularly close. This is a program that wants to contend for Big Ten titles and a program that wants to earn bowl eligibility consistently colliding in the doldrums of November football.
And right now, neither of the programs is in position to do either of those things. Penn State is not going to win the Big Ten title and Rutgers needs to win its last two to guarantee bowl eligibility and well, that isn’t happening. The Scarlet Knights could reasonably go 5-7, but are far more likely to go 4-8. To be blunt, they aren’t going to win the game this weekend. If they do, it will be the worst loss of the James Franklin era and up there among the best for Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano since he took the helm for the second time a few years ago.
Penn State should be able to dominate this one from wire to wire like it did against Maryland and Indiana over the last two games. Maybe that means a 28-7 victory where the offense stumbles early on, or a 56-0 romp where the Nittany Lions never question that they’re going to win. Either way, this game should not be close and if it is, that is going to cause more big picture questions about Penn State and its future.
Experiment on offense
This is the perfect time for offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich to try some things. As the year winds down, it’s going to be more possible for the Nittany Lions to work on things that they otherwise might not be able to during games. They’re no longer competing for their highest goals and now they’ll have a chance to face a defense that is overmatched from a talent perspective.
That should result in Penn State getting a big enough lead to work on some things offensively. That doesn’t mean trying trick plays or anything like that. It’s about finding what concepts work best for players that are very likely to return next year.
That could mean getting freshmen running backs Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen more touches in the passing game, whether that comes from more screens or splitting them out wide at receiver.
It could also mean using Theo Johnson more like the jumbo wide out he’s capable of being or trying out more four wide receiver sets and spreading the field with athleticism rather than with size when multiple tight ends are involved.
There are myriad things Yurcich can do here to test his personnel and see what will best suit the program moving forward. This should be that kind of opportunity, provided his offense can put up points early on against the Scarlet Knights.
More playing time for the youth
There may not be a better time to get the team’s youth on the field than this Saturday afternoon. I’ve said it several times already, but Penn State should be able to build a lead against Rutgers. Once that happens, and probably even while it’s happening, the Nittany Lions should try to rotate in as much youth as possible. There are players that either haven’t received any playing time or have games to burn while keeping their redshirt intact for this season.
Kaden Saunders is a good example of that. He’s played in two games this season, meaning he has two more to use up this year. Well, there are three games left and it seems like the best time to get him and other players in games will be this week and the bowl game when there will inevitably be opt outs.
Of course, the player this most pertains to is the one everyone seemingly wants to see on every snap — Drew Allar. Allar has played quite a bit this season, especially in blowouts, and this Saturday should present that opportunity once again. Franklin has mentioned the difficulty in balancing when to pull the rest of the starters because he wants Allar to get reps with them, but this could present a solution. There’s a chance Penn State is up enough in the first half that he’s able to get Allar in and get the starters out after a series or two with him. Either way, this is a game that will give Penn State’s young players a chance to get more game action.
Final predictions
Penn State 42, Rutgers 7: I don’t know if I really believe Rutgers can score a touchdown but predicting a shutout feels like a bad move. Still, the Scarlet Knights haven’t been able to do much of anything against anyone offensively this year and that’s probably not going to change against one of the best defenses it’ll face.
MVP: Kalen King. Joey Porter Jr. had appendicitis and I don’t envision him playing this weekend. That bumps King up to the No. 1 corner spot for a second week in a row. He’ll get some chances to earn an interception in the game, and I’ll go ahead and say he gets one and runs it back for a touchdown.
Good gamble: Penn State is not favored by enough. The Nittany Lions are 19.5 point favorites in the game against a team that, again, can’t score. Its defense is kind of fine but that’s not exactly a glowing review. I have a hard time envisioning Rutgers keeping pace in this game in any real way Saturday afternoon.
The last word
Franklin on Sean Clifford’s upcoming Senior Day against Michigan State:
“Yeah, you would love for that — I would love for that kid — not to get ahead of ourselves, but in our last game, Senior Day, I hope he gets the type of appreciation and recognition that he deserves. So we’ll see. Again, I don’t spend a whole lot of time on it. I think over time Sean hasn’t any more either. But, yeah, I hope so. But it’s outside of our control, so try not to spend too much time or energy on it. Focus on the things that we can control, which is playing really well on Saturday so hopefully people cheer.”
