Penn State continues Big Ten play this Saturday when it hosts conference newcomer UCLA. The Bruins are in a rut. They are losers of three straight after dropping a 34-13 contest to Oregon at the Rose Bowl on Saturday night. The Nittany Lions, meanwhile, are winners of four straight after topping Illinois 21-7 at Beaver Stadium and continue to project as a College Football Playoff participant.

Get ready for Lions-Bruins with our early game preview.

Time and TV info

Kickoff is Noon ET on FOX. The network’s top crew of Gus Johnson (play by play), Joel Klatt (color commentator), and Jenny Taft (sideline reporter) will call the game. FOX’s BIG Noon Kickoff pregame show will also originate from State College. Where it will broadcast outside of Beaver Stadium is not yet known.

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What is the Penn State-Illinois spread?

Penn State opens as 28.5-point favorite over the Bruins. The total is 44.5. That projects to roughly a 36-7 win for the home side.

Game week schedule for the Lions

On Monday, 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 talk to reporters on ZOOM or after practice in person Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. And, an assistant coach will chat with the media Thursday morning.

What’s up with UCLA?

UCLA is scuffling under first-year head coach DeShaun Foster. After beating Hawaii 16-13 on the road to start the year, the Bruins have lost to Indiana 42-13, UCLA 34-17, and Oregon 34-13. The spread is sizable and with good reason, even if Penn State did not fire on all cylinders on Saturday.

The defense should have no problem handling an offense that is led by quarterback Ethan Garbers, who has not been very good to date. UCLA’s leading rusher, TJ Harden, has just 125 yards on the season and he’s the only one over the century mark. He’s also active in the passing game though. Leading receiver Rico Flores Jr., has 12 catches for 187 yards. The team has no home run hitters on defense, either. This game could get ugly quickly.

Weather report

The latest weather report calls for a nice, and dry, day. It reads: “Some clouds in the morning will give way to mainly sunny skies for the afternoon. High around 70F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph.”

Early Penn State-UCLA storylines

—Will Penn State guards Saleem Wormley and JB Nelson both be back in action? Each left the game against the Fighting Illini due to injury and did not return.

—Will running back Cam Wallace and linebacker Dominic DeLuca be back after sitting out last week?

—Is Penn State going to be more explosive in the passing game? The Lions didn’t need to be last weekend but Drew Allar and the receivers can and need to be sharper with a road trip to USC on the horizon in two weeks.

—Can the pass rush continue generating sacks at the rate it did against Illinois? If so, it will be a long day for Garbers.

—Will the Lions make a change at placekicker or continue to roll with Sander Sahaydak after he missed two kicks on Saturday?

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