Buckeyes starter likely out Saturday; How is Urban Meyer picking Penn State-Ohio State?: Newsstand
Penn State and Ohio State meet this weekend at Beaver Stadium. Which team is longtime Buckeyes coach Urban Meyer picking to cover the point spread? And which OSU starter will likely be out Saturday? Thursday’s newsstand covers that, the latest from the Lions practice field, and more.
Penn State tweets of the day
Meyer, who will be in State College Saturday with FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff, is not yet ready to pick who will win the game. But, the 60-year-old coach turned television analyst thinks the Lions will cover the 3.5-point spread.
“I think this is going to be a walk off [for] one of the two teams,” Meyer said on The Triple Option Show. “I don’t know. I’m not ready to make a pick on who’s going to win, but this will be a one [or] two point game.”
When breaking down the contest, Meyer focused on three things: Both team’s health issues, Ohio State’s issues at left tackle, and the crowd noise that will come from a raucous sold-out Beaver Stadium crowd.
“Penn State’s had really good teams over the years, and they’ve had two problems, a Wolverine problem and a Buckeye problem,” Meyer said. “They solved the Wolverine problem. They don’t play them. And now they got the Buckeyes rolling in town. To me, this is an even game. This is a game that’s going to be dictated by the health of your team.
“Ohio State obviously has an offensive line issue. We’re still not sure how they’re going to manage that. This is a bad time to go into a game with two injuries in your offensive line. First of all, you’re on the road, so you’re going to deal with some noise issues.”
Penn State tight end Tyler Warren also joined Meyer’s podcast with host Rob Stone and co-host Mark Ingram II. You can listen to it at the link below.
Top 10
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CFP contenders
31 teams remain in contention
- 2Breaking
Michigan loses QB
Carter Smith decommits from Wolverines
- 3
Hunter Heisman
Colorado star becomes betting favorite
- 4Hot
Terrible calls
10 worst CFB ref blunders
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Nightmare scenario
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In other news, Lettermen Row reports that Ohio State backup left tackle Zen Michalski, who took over for injured first-teamer Josh Simmons before suffering his own injury against Nebraska, is unlikely to play.
“It’s trending that he’s not going to play,” Buckeyes coach Ryan Day said of Michalski. “We’ll keep evaluating it but I think we have a pretty good plan moving forward.”
Day elected not to reveal that plan, however. But it likely starts with kicking guard Donovan Jackson out to tackle and inserting second-year lineman Luke Montgomery in at guard.
Headlines of the day
Penn State’s plan to ‘upset’ Ohio State on Saturday at Beaver Stadium: The Lions’ 4 keys: Flounders, PennLive
Penn State injury updates: What’s the latest on Drew Allar, Anthony Donkoh, and Dani Dennis-Sutton?: Pickel, BWI
Is the Penn State-Ohio State Game a Must-Win for the Nittany Lions?: Jones, SI
PSU practice notes: Offense | Defense
Penn State Is 7-2 vs. Ohio State When the Nittany Lions Are the Higher-Ranked Team: Poorman, Statecollege.com
Drew Allar participates in Penn State’s Wednesday practice: Impressions: Bauer, BWI
Penn State TE Tyler Warren draws comparisons to Travis Kelce: Trotter, ESPN
Six Penn State-Ohio State recruiting visitors under RPM consideration: Fitz, BWI
Quote of the day
“West Virginia to open the season was a big game. Bowling Green was a big game. If you don’t think it was, lose to Bowling Green and see how people react. They’re all big games. This is the big game because of how we’ve handled the previous [seven]. So we don’t change our process. I can’t control the noise and the things that are outside this building. We stay consistent with how we go about our business, and I can’t control the other things.”
–PSU coach James Franklin on if the OSU game is a ‘big game’ and how the program handles outside noise.
