The Penn State Nittany Lions (1-5) square off against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights (2-4) Saturday in a Big Ten game at noon ET at SHI Stadium in Piscataway, N.J. Below, we analyze the Penn State-Rutgers college football betting odds and lines, with picks and predictions.
Penn State at Rutgers: Betting odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Friday at 5:15 p.m. ET.
- Money line: Penn State -400 (bet $400 to win $100) | Rutgers +310 (bet $100 to win $310)
- Against the spread/ATS: Penn State -11.5 (-110) | Rutgers +11.5 (-110)
- Over/Under: 52.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
Penn State at Rutgers: Three things to know
- Penn State got off the schneid by winning 27-17 at Michigan as a 1-point favorite. It was an even more decisive victory than the 10-point margin indicates as the Nittany Lions out-gained the Wolverines by 131 total yards and held their passing game to only 112 yards.
- Rutgers won its own road game against a conference foe in a 37-30 victory over Purdue. The Scarlet Knights were 12-point underdogs and moved to 4-2 ATS following the win.
- Penn State is 6-0 vs. Rutgers since the Scarlet Knights joined the Big Ten in 2014. The Nittany Lions are 0-3 ATS since 2017, but Penn State was favored by at least 28.5 points in all three games.
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Penn State at Rutgers: Odds, betting lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Rutgers 27, Penn State 24
Money line (ML)
I am locked into Rutgers covering the spread but as a personal rule, I like to sprinkle a little cash on a big underdog if I’m taking the points. I lean RUTGERS +310 for a quarter-unit.
Against the spread (ATS)
Penn State laying too many points vs. Rutgers is becoming an annual thing perhaps. The popularity of these two programs plays a major role in why Penn State is laying double digits.
My concern is BetMGM is baiting us to take Rutgers here. The game opened with the Nittany Lions laying 9 points but it’s been steamed up to the current number even though 80% of the money is on the Scarlet Knights, according to Pregame.com.
It’s great that Penn State head coach James Franklin has won 67% of his games while he’s been there but this ain’t the Nittany Lions of previous seasons. They’ve lost four future NFL players to a combination of injuries and opt-outs.
Penn State is 103rd in points per play, 125th in red-zone scoring percentage and 90th in yards per rush. There is no way the Nittany Lions should be laying double digits on the road.
GIMME RUTGERS +11.5 (-110) for 2 units.
Over/Under (O/U)
Saturday’s weather forecast in Piscataway is predicting 16 MPH winds and a 45% chance of rain. Which in part explains why 87% of the money wagered on the total is hitting the Under and bringing it down from the 57.5-point opener.
Furthermore, Penn State-Rutgers has gone Under in six consecutive games and nothing really stands out from either offense. Rutgers has played some fun games (5-1 Over/Under record) and Penn State has allowed 30 or more points in every game aside from its last.
PASS ON THE TOTAL with a slight lean to the Under.
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