PREDICTIONS: West Virginia vs Penn State

West Virginia faces No. 7 Penn State on Saturday night.

Our staff predicts the game and gives their take on why they think that team will win.

Ashley O’Brien: Penn State brings an energy that’s nearly unmatched at night in Happy Valley. After more than 30 years, the Mountaineers and Nittany Lions meet at night, under the lights. Penn State is coming off of their Rose Bowl win and West Virginia needs to win plain and simple. WVU holds on for three quarters, but are unable to take the win in State College.

Penn State 27, WVU 21

Wesley Shoemaker: For me it is about how long can the Mountaineers stay in the game and if they stay in the game, how does Drew Allar handle the pressure. It’s simple, Penn State is supposed to win this game — by a lot. So what happens if WVU is hanging around. Who tightens up first and what can WVU do to capitalize if it does happen. I think things are close early on, but Penn State pulls away later on. I think the WVU offense can start strong, it’s just how do they adjust.

Penn State 34, WVU 17

Aaron Parker: Entering year five of the Neal Brown era, some things need to improve. One of those things that can improve is the way the team gets up for road games. In the Brown era, the Mountaineers are 7-15 on the road, with a few of those losses coming in blowout fashion. In one of the best environments in college football, with over 100,000 strong at Beaver Stadium, Brown’s squad is going to have to be mentally ready to challenge the Nittany Lions. I think the Mountaineers will come ready to play and hit some positive plays on the ground, but I think there will be missed opportunities in the first half. With the running back duo of talents Nick Singleton and Trey Potts along with the 5-star talent of likely starting quarterback Drew Allar, I think Penn State will be able to protect their home field advantage.

Penn State 38, WVU 20

Patrick Reneau: I think the mountaineers spend this game playing catch up with Penn State. I expect them to jump out to an early lead with WVU trying to stay level. I see West Virginia down big in the 4th quarter and then scoring once or twice to make it.

Penn State 41, WVU 28

Mark Wratchford: West Virginia is heading out to face Penn State for the first time since 1992. The all-time series is lopsided in favor of Penn State 48-9-2, and West Virginia hasn’t won there since 1954. I feel when you look at the two rosters now that West Virginia just looks overpowered against Penn State, not to mention that Penn State has a really good home field advantage. With that being said, I don’t expect Penn State to mess around and they will put the Mountaineers away early.

Penn State 41, WVU 10

Bryce Cohen: West Virginia will need to set the momentum their way early in order to defeat Penn State on the road. One of the most consistent aspects about the 2023 edition of the West Virginia football team needs to be the offensive line. However, the Nittany Lions have one of the most aggressive defenses heading into this CFB season. If Penn State wins the turnover battle, plenty Mountaineer fanatics will be falling asleep in front of their TVs. Although many may assume this game will be a shootout, with Fanduel Sportsbooks placing their Over/Under score total at a whopping 50.5 points, I believe this game will fall short of the hefty line they’ve placed. Despite Pat McAffee’s bold predictions on this matchup, I can’t see any reality in the Mountaineers starting the year 1-0.

Penn State 31, WVU 10

RJ Rice: West Virginia will show some flashes early on and keep up with Penn State in the first quarter as the offensive line creates openings for CJ Donaldson. However, after Penn State opens up the pass game and Drew Allar uses his home crowd, the game will get out of hand by the third quarter. Garrett Greene will not be as effective throwing deep balls downfield because of Penn State’s pass rush not giving him enough time in the pocket. Nicholas Singleton will have a phenomenal game on a different looking West Virginia interior defensive line that needs more games played together.

Penn State 42, WVU 21

Korey Moore: With so much uncertainty from Penn State’s coaching staff and offensive gameplan, it is hard for me to see the Lions racking up one of the high scores they had last season in this first week. With Drew Allar’s role still up in the air as well as his capabilities of filling that role going forward, he will do his best to perform at home but may not bring everything to the table early on. As for West Virginia, the team’s future this season is uncertain, but the coaching staff have had plenty of time to provide a solid framework for the team to follow. If that is the case, that should be something the Mountaineers stick to, keeping them in this game amongst Penn State’s uncertainty.

Penn State 27, WVU 17