Victory Bell Rings
Fansided

Penn State vs. Northwestern Prediction Roundtable

By Barry Leonard Jr.

facebooktwitterreddit

The Penn State Nittany Lions have had a great start to the 2014 season under new head coach James Franklin. The Nittany Lions are 4-0 and sit at the top of the Big Ten East division. Penn State has been plagued by slow starts this season, but has found a way to win in the end. After dismantling the UMass Minutemen 48-7 next week, the Nittany Lions begin the heart of their Big Ten schedule.

More from Penn State Football

Up next is a battle with the always pesky Northwestern Wildcats.

Below you’ll find the VBR staff’s predictions for the upcoming Big Ten clash inside of Beaver Stadium.

Lead Editor Barry Leonard Jr.
The Northwestern Wildcats have proven to be a tough opponent for the Nittany Lions over the past two years. However, I’m expecting this year to be different. The Wildcats are down after the loss of their top running back and top wide receiver. Sure, quarterback Trevor Siemian can throw the ball all over the field, but I’m still not worried. Penn State has been awesome on defense and should get plenty of pressure into the Northwestern backfield.

On offense, there have been some ups-and-downs, but the running game finally got on track last week. Okay, so it was against UMass, but the numbers were still impressive. I’m expecting to see the Nittany Lions control the game on offense with a good mix of the run and quarterback Christian Hackenberg.

Based on past experience, this one will probably be close early, but I feel the Nittany Lions will be able to pull away in the second half and celebrate Homecoming with a 27-10 victory.

Staff Writer Ryan Lance
The Nittany Lions are coming off a convincing win versus an unmatched UMass team, in which they were able to get some younger guys some playing time and even had the opportunity to work on their running game. Now I know it was UMass, but having the opportunity to focus on the running game can only induce confidence in the offensive line which will ultimately help them succeed as a unit, as they get back into the grunt play of Big Ten play.

This weekend the Nittany Lions welcome Northwestern to Happy Valley for their annual Homecoming game. The Wildcats come to Beaver Stadium with a 1-2 record as they fell to California and Northern Illinois before picking up a win last weekend versus Western Illinois.

With Northwestern coming into the game with the 76th ranked defense in the country, I expect the Nittany Lions to continue to hone their running game. I think the offense will use a good balance or run/pass and should have no problem moving the ball down field.

Northwestern’s offense ranks near the bottom in all of college football as they currently have the 106th ranked team in total offense. They average 115 rushing yards per game and 228.3 through the air. With Penn State possessing the No. 1 rush defense in the country, I’m expecting the Wildcats to turn to their passing game.

If Penn State can move the ball and can finish drives like they did last week, they should have no issue with the Wildcats. I think Northwestern’s offensive woes will cause them to struggle versus our defense so I’ll take the Nittany Lions 27-13.

Staff Writer Corey Hunter

This game has all the makings of being very similar to the Akron contest. Penn State will most likely be the superior team, especially on defense, but they may not be able to put the game away until late in the second half.

The offense, and more importantly the running game, founds it’s stride last week against an outmatched Massachusetts squad. This week they will be going against a Northwestern defense allowing almost 140 yds/game on the ground to opposing teams. While I see Penn State trying to run the ball to keep the Wildcats honest, look for the Nittany Lions to air it out against Northwestern’s beleaguered pass defense.

In just three games, Northwestern has allowed over 257 yards passing / game and six touchdowns to opposing teams. Look for Penn State to continue to exploit that part of the Wildcats defense.

Overall, Penn State should head into their bye week with an undefeated record, and they should continue to lead the Big Ten’s East Division at the conclusion of Saturday’s game. The game will be close early, but the Nittany Lions end up winning comfortably 27-13.

Staff Writer Eric Sion

Penn State hosts Northwestern for its 2014 Homecoming game and Big Ten home opener. On paper, Penn State is obviously the superior team. Northwestern’s offense just isn’t very good and you got to like Penn State’s chances with its defense. The running game should continue to gain momentum after last week’s performance and Christian Hackenberg will do his usual thing. But there’s no question that this could be a trap game for Penn State with the Michigan game looming. But I think the Nittany Lions win 27-17 to improve to 5-0.

Home/Penn State Football