3 Bold predictions for Penn State Football’s home opener vs. Ball State
Penn State Football returns to Beaver Stadium for there home opener this Saturday at 3:30 pm when they welcome the reigning MAC Champions, the Ball State Cardinals
Penn State Football returns to the friendly confines of Happy Valley this weekend looking to advance to 2-0 this season after upsetting the 12th ranked Wisconsin Badgers in Week 1.
The reigning MAC Champion Ball State Cardinals await Penn State Football, a Cardinals team also looking to get to 2-0 this season after handling business 31-21 over Western Illinois last Saturday.
This is a Ball State team that returns 16 starters from a year ago, has a ton of “super seniors” and will be looking for a signature win on Saturday, all be it as a heavy underdog to the Nittany Lions.
Wide receiver Justin Hall will be a Cardinal to watch for on Saturday, the active receptions leader in the FBS posted big numbers in the win last week with eight catches for 137 yards and two scores.
The Penn State Football offense got off to a slow start in Madison, but showed signs of life in the second half, mostly through explosive plays to wideouts Jahan Dotson and Keandre Lambert-Smith.
Some performances we maybe did not anticipate Saturday, like Arnold Ebiketie, so it has us thinking about some bold predictions for the Nittany Lions for this weekend.
Here are three bold predictions for Penn State vs. Ball State on Saturday:
Sean Clifford will throw for 400 + yards for the first time in his career
Sean Clifford looked lost for the better part of the first half against the Badgers, but made the big plays he needed to in the second half, throwing for 247 yards on 18 of 33 passing, with a touchdown.
Most importantly, Clifford played turnover free football.
Clifford will have an easier task this week, against a Ball State defense that allowed 367 yards passing last week to Western Illinois. The leathernecks quarterback completed 30 of his 43 passes, 8.5 yards per completion, but did throw an interception. The Cardinals allowed Western Illinois wide receiver Dennis Houston to go for 12 catches and 237 with two touchdowns as well.
All these stats bode well on paper for Clifford and the Nittany Lions’ offense, as they look to take one step closer to this offense really clicking on all cylinders. If the Penn State Football offensive line can give Clifford time in the pocket, he could be on track for a big day in front of what should be a sold out Beaver Stadium.