West Virginia Mountaineers vs Penn State Nittany Lions Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 09/02/2023

Game Time: 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, September 2, 2023

Venue:  Beaver Stadium, University Park, PA 

Where to Watch:  NBC, Peacock

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  WVU +20.5, PSU -20.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  WVU +20.5, PSU -20.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  WVU +20.5, PSU -20.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

West Virginia Mountaineers:  0-0 (Big 12)

Penn State Nittany Lions:  0-0 (Big Ten East)

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West Virginia Mountaineers:  N/A

Penn State Nittany Lions:  N/A

West Virginia finished last season with a 5-7 record overall and they had a 3-6 record in their conference games too. They were 3-3 in their home games, 2-4 in their road games, and they were also 0-0 in their neutral site games last season, but they will be on the road for this season opener. Last season, their offense was averaging 30.6 points scored per game while their defense was allowing an average of 32.9 points per game. Their offense also averaged 399 yards per game while their defense was allowing an average of 412.3 yards per game. JT Daniels led the team in passing yards with 2107, Tony Mathis led the team in rushing yards with 562, and Sam James led the team in receiving yards with 745.

 

 

 

Penn State finished last season with an 11-2 record overall and they had a 7-2 record in their conference games too. They were 6-1 in their home games, 4-1 in their road games, and they were also 1-0 in their neutral site games last season, but they will be at home for this season opener. Last season, their offense was averaging 35.8 points scored per game while their defense was allowing an average of 18.2 points per game. Their offense also averaged 433.6 yards per game while their defense was allowing an average of 323.5 yards per game. Sean Clifford led the team in passing yards with 2822, Nicholas Singleton led the team in rushing yards with 1061, and Parker Washington led the team in receiving yards with 611.

The current betting odds have West Virginia listed as a 20.5 point underdog in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. West Virginia wasn't great last season with their losing 5-7 record overall and they were also 3-6 in their conference games as they struggled against Big 12 opponents. They are going to be playing a Big Ten team in this 1st game of the season and they have to go on the road against a really good Penn State team that has plenty of expectations this year after the great season they put up last year. Penn State finished last season with an 11-2 record overall and they were 7-2 in their conference games, but now they are playing a more physical team from the Big 12 and this is a game that West Virginia will definitely bring their best effort in since this is a bit of a rivalry too. Penn State is going to improve this season but their defense is still what wins them a lot of games and in this 1st game of the season they are not just going to click offensively and put up a ton of points here. The best way to place a bet here is on West Virginia to cover the spread in this game. 

West Virginia Penn State Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Saturday, September 2, 2023 (7:30 pm ET start time) is PSU 31 WVU 21.

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West Virginia Mountaineers: 3-7 ATS against Big 10 conference opponents. 17-10 UNDER as an underdog of 10.5 to 21 points. 25-11 UNDER in a road game where the total is between 49.5 and 56. 8-4 UNDER in road games.

Penn State Nittany Lions: 16-9 ATS in all games. 13-5 ATS as a favorite. 49-25 ATS as a favorite of 10.5 to 21 points. 9-3 UNDER as a home favorite. 8-1 UNDER as a home favorite of 17.5 to 21 points. 10-4 UNDER in home games.

West Virginia Mountaineers:  D. Mallinger (S) Ques Sat - Back.

Penn State Nittany Lions:  None.

“The reason I’m not getting into it is they don’t have a depth chart. Might as well. Everybody you know is going to play. Everybody you think might play is going to play.” - Neal Brown on the battles for starting positions on his team coming into the new college football season. 

"He's been really, really good. His decision-making's been good, his completion percentage has been really good." - James Franklin on Drew Allar coming into the new season. 

WR Braham, Cortez 

WR Carter, Devin 

WR Aaron, Jeremiah 

WR Malashevich, Graeson 

TE Taylor, Kole 

QB Greene, Garrett 

RB Donaldson Jr., CJ 

WR Wallace III, Harrison 

WR Lambert-Smith, KeAndre 

WR Clifford, Liam 

TE Johnson, Theo 

QB Allar, Drew 

RB Singleton, Nicholas 

Passing: N/A

Rushing: N/A

Receiving: N/A

Touchdowns: N/A

Passing: N/A

Rushing: N/A

Receiving: N/A

Touchdowns: N/A

Coaches:

West Virginia Mountaineers: Neal Brown (5th season)

Penn State Nittany Lions: James Franklin (10th season)