Penn State is a favorite on the road in week 3 against Illinois in a Big Ten opener, and the Nittany Lions are the popular pick in the early afternoon slate. The entitre staff of ESPN’s College Gameday made their picks in this game in their weekly picks, and they all went with Penn State on the road.
That included celebrity guest picker Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, who flew into Boulder, Colorado for the pregame show from Colorado’s campus. Johnson even threw in a “We Are” reference for good measure.
ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit did suggest this will be a good test for Penn State as they take on the road against an Illinois team looking to rebound from a loss last week. But in the end, the entire crew agreed Penn State is the better team in a better spot overall.
Penn State is a 14.5-point favorite for the noon eastern kickoff.
Follow Kevin McGuire on Threads, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.