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Here are some takeaways from the first half.
It hasn’t been perfect, but Auburn is still in the game.
Auburn started off the game with a field goal, and Penn State responded with a wide-open touchdown.
Nix has looked decent, and the offense has moved the ball better than expected.
Here are five takeaways from the first half between Auburn and Penn State.
The Auburn Tigers will meet the Penn State Nittany Lions on Saturday night from Beaver Stadium.
The Auburn Tigers will meet the Penn State Nittany Lions on Saturday night from Beaver Stadium.
Auburn is coming off two wins in a row over Alabama State and Akron but will face a tough Penn State squad tonight. As for the Nittany Lions, they are coming off wins over Ball State and Wisconsin.
The Penn State Nittany Lions meet the Auburn Tigers Saturday in week 3 college football action at Beaver Stadium. The Auburn Tigers look for another win after beating Akron and Alabama State. The Penn State Nittany Lions look for a win after beating Wisconsin and Ball State.
This will be a fun Saturday night of college football, here is everything you need to know to stream the game.
NCAA odds courtesy of Tipico Sportsbook. Odds last updated Saturday at 6:00 p.m. ET.
#22 Auburn vs. #10 Penn State (-5.5)
O/U: 53.5
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Gameday has finally arrived.
Auburn will take on Penn State tonight at 6:30pm CT in Penn State’s annual white out game. The Nittany Lions are 8-8 all time in their white out games.
Lee Corso of College Gameday brought up during today’s broadcast that. Penn State has lost their last five games to SEC opponents. Auburn is no slouch, and according to Corso, the Tigers have a legitimate shot in this game.
College Gameday went through their picks for the marquee matchup between no. 22 Auburn and no. 10 Penn State. Let’s take a look at what the crew thinks about this game.
Here are the five offensive keys for Saturday’s game against Penn State.
We’ve talked about it for months and now is the time for Auburn’s offense to step up on the road.
No. 22 Auburn travels up to Penn State to take on the 10th ranked Nittany Lions in a battle under the lights at Happy Valley. This is Auburn’s first road game against a Big Ten opponent in 90 years (1931).
Safe to say this is uncharted territory for Bryan Harsin’s Tigers. However, Auburn comes into this game with something the Tigers didn’t have very often last season: Confidence.
Auburn has been firing on all cylinders offensively through the first two games of the season. Auburn leads the nation in points per game (61.0) and is seventh in total yards per game (575.5). Granted, Auburn’s strength of schedule is last in the nation at 130th, but even that presents some challenges for Penn State. According to James Franklin, Auburn is a difficult opponent to assess because of how much they haven’t put on tape. What will Auburn try and do to move the ball effectively against this sound Penn State defense?
Here are the five offensive keys to the game for Auburn.
What do you think about these predictions?
Week two had some wild outcomes in the SEC.
Arkansas beat no. 15 Texas like a drum. South Carolina hit a walk-off field goal to beat East Carolina. No. 7 Texas A&M survived a scare from Colorado and lost starting QB Haynes King in the process. Mississippi State hammered NC State. And Vanderbilt, who I still have no faith in, managed to pull out a win over Colorado State. I went 10-3 on my picks in the Southeastern Conference to put me at 19-6 (76%) on the season. This week, there are a lot more intriguing matchups on paper. Let’s dive in.
Here are my predictions for the week three slate.
Auburn vs Penn State prediction and game preview. Saturday, September 18
Auburn vs Penn State prediction and game preview.
Date: Saturday, September 18
Game Time: 7:30 ET
Venue: Beaver Stadium, State College, PA
Network: ABC
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– All of the CFN Fearless Predictions
Let’s not put Auburn in the national championship quite yet after beating Akron and Alabama State by a combined score of 122 to 10, but for a rebuilding team under a new coaching staff, that’s exactly what needed to happen.
Bo Nix has been brilliant – again, Akron and Alabama State, though – hitting 75% of his passes for 383 yards and five scores with no picks. He got the two warm-up games to be ready for this, he’s throwing well, and he’s a veteran who’ll hardly be fazed by playing in Happy Valley.
The offense isn’t exactly supposed to be along for the ride, but the defense looks like it really will be a terror all year. The pass rush has been tremendous against the inferior competition, and there hasn’t been anything happening against the run D so far.
This really is going to be a good group, and Penn State couldn’t get the new-look O going in the win over Wisconsin to start the season, but …
– Week 3 College Football Expert Picks
Ball State is a restaurant quality team that should be in the mix for the MAC title, and the Nittany Lion offense ripped through it without an issue.
The defense isn’t a question mark – Wisconsin couldn’t break through it, and Ball State didn’t get a touchdown until the fourth quarter – but it’s the other side that had to show the pop and explosion.
For all of the problems against the Badgers, a few big downfield pass plays changed the game. Sean Clifford appears to have settled in, the running backs are deep and talented, and the balance should be enough to keep the Tiger defensive front on its heels.
– Week 3 College Football Schedule, Predictions, Game Previews
Just how for real is Auburn?
The two layup games showed nothing other than it’s Auburn, and it had easy opponents that barely provided a live scrimmage.
On Saturday night in Beaver Stadium, the crowd will be insane, the Penn State defense will feed off it – it doesn’t need any more juice – and the Auburn running game will have a hard time getting going.
But it’ll be close.
Just as it seems like Penn State is about to take over, Nix will lead the way on a good scoring drive. The Nittany Lions will hold late, but there will be a whole lot of sweating.
Penn State 27, Auburn 20
Line: Penn State -6, o/u: 53.5
ATS Confidence out of 5: 2
5: Steve is proud of you
1: Ordinary Joe
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– Bowl Projections | Rankings
Despite the Tigers’ strength of schedule, they have managed to crack inside the ESPN FPI top 10.
Despite the Tigers’ strength of schedule, they have managed to crack inside the ESPN FPI top 10 heading into their showdown with Penn State in Happy Valley. The Nittany Lions sit at no. 8.
Auburn’s current strength of schedule is 130th nationally, which is dead last. However, their remaining strength of schedule is second nationally only behind Arkansas. There are six other SEC schools in the FPI’s top 25, including Arkansas, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Florida, Georgia, and Alabama. Five of those six teams are on Auburn’s remaining schedule. Throw in Penn State, and Auburn is staring down one of the toughest schedules in the nation. This week, we will find out a lot about the Tigers.
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College GameDay will be up in Happy Valley this weekend!
It’s finally here.
Auburn’s matchup with Penn State has been looming in the distance for years, and it’s finally here – and College GameDay will be there to witness it.
ESPN announced Saturday afternoon following the conclusion of Iowa vs Iowa State that they along with College GameDay would be taking the trip up to Happy Valley to watch a Top 25 showdown between Auburn and Penn State.
At the time this article was written, both the USA Today AFCA Coaches Poll and the AP Top 25 poll have not been released. More updates to come regarding Auburn and Penn State’s spot in the AP poll.
State College, we're coming! @AuburnFootball vs @PennStateFball on Saturday 🏈 pic.twitter.com/odWgVdkDz9
— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) September 12, 2021
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Can Auburn capitalize on the clean football they played in week one?
Auburn’s schedule has worked out in their favor, it seems.
Auburn dominated Akron last week and is expected to build on their performance against the Zips this weekend against Alabama State. All in time to prepare for Penn State in eight days.
Throughout college football, even in the SEC, teams during week one did not look well prepared to play. Texas A&M, Florida, Vanderbilt. LSU, Arkansas, Mississippi State, Missouri, and Tennessee all came out of the gates struggling. Granted, six of those eight teams won their respective matchups, but they did not look good in the process.
Auburn should have reason to believe with another strong showing against Alabama State that they can head up to Happy Valley and perform well against the Nittany Lions.
Justin Ferguson of the Auburn Observer joined the “Locked on Auburn” podcast to give his thoughts on Auburn’s season trajectory if they continue to play sound football.
“I think the way Auburn views themselves right now is ‘we did everything we were supposed to do in week one, let’s do it in week two. And if we keep doing that, once the competition steps up, we’re going to be prepared for it.’
“Externally, you can look at other teams and ask ‘how did these teams struggle?’ Was is becuase the team just wasn’t on the same page? Was it because they were breaking new players in, or new systems in? Or was it simply that they just got beat?
“Auburn played one of the worst teams that they could have on Saturday. You have to keep that in mind. But, Auburn was still efficient on both sides of the ball. They played very well at the line of scrimmage. And it’s a different system that they’re still breaking in. You start to feel better about Auburn when UCLA is blowing the doors off of LSU on the line of scrimmage. Penn State played one of the only ranked vs ranked games of the weekend, and there were some things Penn State did not do well in that game.”
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