It's Penn State-Northwestern week: Time, TV channel, early storylines, point spread, more

Penn State finishes the September portion of its schedule with its second road trip of the year. The Nittany Lions face their third Big Ten West opponent in as many weeks on Saturday when they travel to Northwestern. The team is fresh off of a 31-0 demolition of Iowa.

“I just thought we played really good complementary football, offense, defense and special teams,” Lions coach James Franklin said. “Obviously, our defense played a suffocating style of D, and were able to get turnovers that were extremely ball-aware, but the other thing is, again, we didn’t turn the ball over on offense either. Special teams, I thought we did a really nice job.”

Get ready for the Wildcats with our early look at the game below.

Time and TV info

This game will start at Noon ET (11 a.m. CT) at Ryan Field in Evanston, Ill. Big Ten Network is televising the contest. As of early Monday morning, the broadcast team has not yet been revealed.

What is the Penn State-Northwestern point spread?

Penn State is a massive favorite over Northwestern. FanDuel lists the Lions as a 25.5-point favorite. The over/under betting total is 46.5.

Game week schedule for the Lions

The schedule will be similar to what it has been in years past. There will be no media availability on Monday. On Tuesday, head coach James Franklin will hold his first news conference of the week around lunchtime. He will also speak after Wednesday’s practice and during the second half hour of the Penn State Coaches Show on Thursday, which runs from 6-7 p.m. ET. Select players will be made available to reporters on ZOOM or after practice in person Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. And, an assistant coach will chat with the media Thursday morning.

Outside of a potential spot on a pregame show, that will be it for the week until Franklin’s postgame news conference, with players following him.

What’s up with Northwestern?

Despite a bunch of offseason controversy, the Wildcats are not winless in 2023. Interim head coach David Braun won his second game last Saturday as Northwestern stunned Minnesota 37-34 in overtime despite trailing by 21 at one point. Quarterback Ben Bryant, who threw a 25-yard walk off touchdown pass to win it, has more interceptions (three) than touchdowns (two) so far this season and just 408 passing yards. Running back Cam Porter has a team-high 33 carries for 147 yards but has not yet found the end zone. Cam Johnson and AJ Henning are the top receivers. They’ve combined to catch 23 passes for 223 yards and a touchdown.

Linebacker Bryce Gallagher is the heart and soul of the Northwestern defense. He has 37 tackles and an interception. The Wildcats do not have a particularly good pass rush. And, they’ve made the only field goal they have attempted this season.

Weather report

The early forecast from Weather.com calls for a sunny, 74-degree day. Raina and win are not expected to be a factor.

Early Penn State-Northwestern storylines

–Will Penn State get receiver Harrison Wallace III back in action on Saturday? He has missed the last two games with an undisclosed injury.

–Can the Nittany Lions keep their 30-plus point streak going? They’ve done it 11 games in a row and will be favored to do again this weekend against an average Wildcats defense.

–Is there anything Northwestern can do to keep pace with Penn State? It has two victories this season but is not scary on offense or defense. This seems like more of a mismatch than any of the other Lions opponents this season outside of Delaware, which is, of course, a FCS school.