Coming off their fourth win of the season, and their fifth straight dating back to last season, the Penn State Nittany Lions are opening up as nine point favorite on Big Ten worst, Northwestern Wildcats.
Last week, The Nittany Lions dominated a weak UMass team, scoring 45 or more points in a single game for the first time since 2009 when they defeated Eastern Illinois 52-3. Penn State’s rushing attack finally opened as they put up five touchdowns thanks to 228 yards on 45 carries. The offense, which has been shaky throughout the first four games of the season, looks to be settling down as they work their way into the meat of their schedule.
For Northwestern, the Wildcats are coming off a nice 24-7 victory over Western Illinois for their first win of the season and their first in their last seven. With one of the worst offenses in college football this season, the Wildcats are not looking forward to meeting the Nittany Lions sixth ranked defense this upcoming week.
Since their first game against UCF, Penn State’s defense has not allowed more than 10 points, and only allowed a combined 20 in their last three match-ups. Also, they only allowed an average of 271 yards per game. The Nittany Lions sit in the top 10 of almost every defensive category besides total yards allowed and passing yards allowed. Their run defense however currently ranks as the best in college football, only allowing a mere 198 yards this season with 102 of those yards coming against Rutgers. Therefore, minus the Rutgers game, Penn State’s defense has only allowed 96 yards over the course of three games. An average of 32 yards per game.
Northwestern will try to battle the Nittany Lions’ top ten defense with their 104th ranked offense that has only amassed 1,032 yards this season. The Nittany Lions are slightly weaker through the air than on the ground, but going up against the 106th passing offense in the country may not be an issue for Penn State. Northwestern’s rushing attack is not much better only coming into the game with 346 total rushing yards, which is 110th this year in the nation.
On paper, the match-up between these two Big Ten teams seems to be a no-contest. Penn State is obviously the better team at the current time, however the worries of the offensive line may sway some book makers. The Nittany Lions will most likely try to focus on the rushing game once again on Saturday against Northwestern’s timid rush defense that has allowed an average of 139.7 yards per game this season.
[Photo: Onwardstate.com]
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