It's Penn State-Maryland week: Time, TV info, early storylines, and more

Penn State looks for its eighth win of the season on Saturday when it hosts Maryland at Beaver Stadium. Both sides are dealing with bumps and bruises. But, only one is coming off of a victory. The Lions beat Indiana last Saturday 45-14, while Mike Locksley’s side dropped a 23-10 contest at Wisconsin.

“You got to value every win that you can get,” Penn State coach James Franklin said “So, obviously we did some good things. When we talk about the field position battle, we won that. The turnover battle, we won that. I think that’s really been a story for our season and something that I’m really going to emphasize on Sunday with the guys that we’re able to create turnovers on defense and limit them on offense. And then the explosive play battle, we won it. We did not meet our goal on offense, but we did win it in terms of ours compared to theirs.

“Obviously, the 16 tackles for loss, the most that we’ve had since they started keeping the statistic from an NCAA perspective. Our red zone defense has been tremendous all year long. And then Nick and and Kaytron both tied to the freshman record of touchdowns. It’s obvious that those things are big for us.”

Get ready for the Lions-Terps matchup with our Monday kickoff post.

Time and TV info

This game was placed on the six-day television network scheduling window. Thus, we didn’t find out when it would start until back on Saturday night. However, we now know that the Penn State-Maryland game is set for 3:30 p.m. on FOX. The broadcast crew was not immediately known.

What is the Penn State-Maryland spread?

Oddsmakers installed Penn State as a 12-point favorite. That line is not expected to move much during the week but could creep close to a touchdown if head coach James Franklin offers good news about the state of his offensive line this week. However, unless there is a new season-ending injury to reveal, don’t expect to hear much in the way of news that would change the line.

Game week schedule for Penn State

Everything should be status quo for Penn State to have a regular media schedule this week.

Tuesday will see player interviews and a lengthy news conference with Franklin at lunchtime. On Wednesday, more player calls will take place in addition to a chance to watch practice plus another opportunity to interview Franklin and a player.

Thursday brings the Penn State Coaches Show, which Franklin typically appears on for the last half hour, and that will be it for the week until Saturday after the game.

What’s up with Maryland?

As noted above, the Terps suffered a setback on Saturday. That brings their season record to 6-3. Maryland hardly had a chance during a sloppy day at Camp Randall Stadium last week. It trailed at halftime and didn’t put any points on the board until the third quarter. That’s true despite the fact that the team got star quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa back from injury. He was not very good, however, finishing 10 of 23 for just 77 yards, one touchdown, and an interception. He was rushed frequently and that is something Penn State should try and do, as well. Exotic blitzes from all parts of the field will go a long way toward slowing down the Maryland offense.

All told, the Maryland offense has some weapons, but none that should consistently overpower the Nittany Lions. We understand why some think this game is one Penn State should worry about. But, ultimately, they are a deserving double-digit favorite for the second week in a row.

Weather outlook

Penn State could be dealing with wind and some rain again. According to Weather.com, the early forecast is as follows:

“A shower or two around the area in the morning, then partly cloudy in the afternoon. High 54F. Winds W at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 30%”

We’ll see how or if it changes throughout the week.

Early Lions-Terps storylines

–Will Penn State get any of its three injured starting offensive linemen back? Caedan Wallace, Olu Fashanu, and Landon Tengwall were all out last Saturday. Getting them back this week would be a big boost, of course.

–How will the Lions handle the quarterback position? Our best guess is that Sean Clifford will still start but that Drew Allar will be given a plan to play a sizable role, no matter the score.

–Will Penn State be able to jump on Maryland early? Slow starts have not been helpful the last few weeks, even if last weekend’s one was irrelevant to the final score.