Penn State Nittany Lions vs. Auburn Tigers: Prediction, Preview, Picks & Odds - 9/17/2022

Game time: 3:30 p.m. ET

Venue: Jordan-Hare Stadium, Auburn, AL

Where to watch: CBS

DraftKings: Penn State -3

FanDuel: Penn State -3.5

BetMGM: Penn State -3

Caesars: Penn State -3

No. 22 Penn State: 2-0

Auburn: 2-0

Penn State: won 46-10 vs. Ohio

Auburn: won 24-16 vs. San Jose State

This has the potential to be the game of the week given the history of the two programs and trying to see where they’re going this year. Looking at this Penn State-Auburn matchup, the fact that the Nittany Lions are only laying three points on the road in what’s going to be a wild atmosphere in Jordan-Hare has to be astounding.

It’s not that I dislike Auburn, but it’s more so the talent level between the two schools right now is widening. And unless T.J. Finley can suddenly outduel Sean Clifford in a game, I don’t anticipate that being the case.

Clifford, the Penn State quarterback, has looked great to start the year and has been a reason why the Nittany Lions are off to a 2-0 start and are now No. 22 in the top-25 rankings. Outside of that pick six he threw against Purdue in Week 1, he’s been solid with 495 yards and five touchdowns. He’s also gotten great production running the ball from Nicolas Singleton with at over 10 yards per carry and two touchdowns.

It was entirely expected that Penn State would win last Saturday against Ohio, but in the way that it happened was sort of a shocker. Maybe there’s too much of a talent discrepancy between Ohio and Penn State, but Ohio is a strong MAC contender and Penn State dominated that game. Singleton ran for 179 yards and two touchdowns, including a 70-yard scamper, and Clifford completed 19 of 27 for 213 yards and one touchdown. Backup quarterback Drew Allar came in and threw two more scores in relief.

"Once he got that edge, nobody was catching him," Penn State safety Ji’Ayir Brown said of Singleton. "I don't think they were prepared for Nick's game-breaking speed."

Auburn is going to present a tough test running the ball this week, seeing how Auburn has allowed just 64 rushing yards on average through two games. But Auburn has also faced teams like Mercer and San Jose State, two programs not really known for their game-breaking talent. San Jose State, especially, was an instance where Auburn should’ve played much better and won by more.

"Coach (Bryan) Harsin just talked about it," said Finley, who started again at quarterback. "We easily could have lost this game. To go out there and find a way to get the job done, that's all that matters. It doesn't matter how much we won by."

Defense is going to carry Auburn this year. It’s going to take some time before the Tigers find their next Cam Newton or Nick Marshall. Penn State is starting the year averaging close to 500 yards of offense per game and have allowed just 345 total. If Auburn can only get production from Tank Bigsby, it’s going to be a long afternoon for Auburn.

Penn State has that explosive element they didn’t have last year, and I think it’s going to wear down the Auburn defense. The Lions haven’t had much to celebrate over the last couple of years, but maybe this is the year they challenge for the Big Ten. Penn State by 17

Penn State is 10-6 as a favorite ATS in its last 16 instances.

Under is 11-3 when Penn State plays an SEC opponent in its last 14.

Auburn is 4-8 ATS as an underdog the past three years.

Passing: Sean Clifford -- 495 yards, 5 TD, 1 INT

Rushing: Nick Singleton -- 210 yards, 2 TD

Receiving: Mitchell Tinsley -- 111 yards, 2 TD

Passing: T.J. Finley -- 279 yards, 1 TD, 3 INT

Rushing: Tank Bigsby -- 198 yards, 3 TD

Receiving: Ja'Varrius Johnson -- 158 yards