No. 3/3 Penn State vs. No. 4/4 Ohio State

UNIVERSITY PARK- No. 3/3 Penn State welcomes No. 4/4 Ohio State to Beaver Stadium on Saturday, November 2. Kickoff is set for noon on FOX.

BIG NOON KICKOFF: Penn State will appear as FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff for the third time this season and 12th time in program history. Big Noon Kickoff will be hosted in Happy Valley for the fourth time in the show’s history. Penn State was the featured game for its 34-12 win over West Virginia and its 27-11 victory over UCLA.

SERIES HISTORY: Penn State meets Ohio State for the 40th time in program history. Penn State trails 25-14 in the all-time series. Seventeen of the 40 previous matchups have been decided by one possession. In 2023, Penn State fell 20-12 in Columbus. Drew Allar threw for 191 yards and a touchdown, while Alex Felkins hit two 40+ yard field goals. Abdul Carter and Curtis Jacobs tied for the team lead with nine tackles, while Johnny Dixon had two tackles for loss and a sack.

STORIED PROGRAMS SQUARE OFF: Saturday’s matchup will feature two of the Top 10 winningest programs in NCAA history. Both teams are ranked among the Top 10 in both all-time victories and all-time winning percentage. Penn State and Ohio State are meeting as AP Top 25 opponents for the 23rd time in series history. The teams have met as AP Top 10 opponents on 11 occasions. This will be the second time the teams have matched up as AP Top 5 opponents. Saturday’s game will be the 13th time that Penn State-Ohio State has been the featured game for ESPN’s College GameDay, taking over as the show’s most frequent matchup, breaking a tie with Alabama-LSU.

7-0 START: Penn State is off to a 7-0 start for the 20th time in program history and the third time under James Franklin (2017, 2019). The Nittany Lions are also 4-0 to start Big Ten play for the eighth time in school history and third time under Franklin (2017, 2019).

THE OPPOSITION: Ohio State is 6-1 this season, including a 3-1 mark in Big Ten play. Last Saturday, the Buckeyes earned a 21-17 win over Nebraska. Will Howard threw for 221 yards and three touchdowns, while Carnell Tate had 102 receiving yards, including a 40-yard score. Jeremiah Smith added a 60-yard touchdown grab. Ohio State tallied 13 tackles for loss and three sacks.

BY THE NUMBERS

19 – Jaylen Reed scored on a 19-yard interception return at Wisconsin.

11th – College GameDay will originate from Happy Valley for the 11th time in the show’s history.

Top 5 – Penn State will play its 12th regular season game in program history in which both teams are ranked in the Top 5 of the AP Poll.

30 – The Nittany Lions have allowed just 30 second-half points this season and just six points in the third quarter.

OHIO STATE SCOUTING REPORT

• Ryan Day is in his fifth full season with a career record of 62-9, a 42-4 mark in Big Ten Conference games, and two Big Ten Championships and two College Football Playoff appearances.
• Ohio State is 6-1 overall and 3-1 in Big Ten play this season.
• The Buckeyes are coming off a 21-17 win over Nebraska.
• QB Will Howard threw for 221 yards and three touchdowns, connecting on touchdown passes with Carnell Tate (40 yards), Jeremiah Smith (60 yards) and Quinshon Judkins (9 yards).
• On offense, Ohio State ranks second in the Big Ten in scoring (40.3 ppg; 11th nationally) and total offense (471.9 ypg; 9th), fourth in rushing offense (188.0; 35th) and fifth in passing offense (283.9; 22nd).
• QB Will Howard is second in the Big Ten in passing touchdowns (17) and third in completion percentage (74.0).
• WR Jeremiah Smith is second in the conference in receiving yards per game (89.0) and receiving touchdowns (8), while sitting third in total receiving yards (623) and 10th in receptions per game (5.0).
• RBs Quinshon Judkins (520 yards, 6 TD) and TreVeyon Henderson (449 yards, 4 TD) lead the rushing attack.
• On defense, the Buckeyes rank first in the Big Ten in scoring defense (11.9 ppg; 4th nationally) and total defense (254.4 ypg; 2nd), second in rushing defense (91.3; 6th) and third in passing defense (163.1; 8th). OSU also paces the Big Ten averaging 7.6 tackles for loss per game (13th).
• S Sonny Styles paces Ohio State with 42 tackles, while DE JT Tuimoloau leads the squad with seven tackles for loss and four sacks.

TOP 5 MATCHUPS

• Penn State is 4-7 all-time in regular season matchups where both teams are ranked in the Top 5 of the AP Poll.
• The Nittany Lions have played in six more matchups in bowl games and Penn State is 2-3-1 in those games.
• Penn State is 17-60-1 all-time against Top 5 teams, including a 15-55 record in regular season matchups.
• When ranked among the Top 5, Penn State has an all-time record of 102-23-1.

BIG NOON KICKOFF

• Penn State will be featured on FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff for the third time this season.
• The Nittany Lions’ 34-12, season-opening win at West Virginia, on August 31, and their 27-11 win over UCLA were featured on Big Noon Kickoff.
• Since the show’s debut in 2019, Penn State has made 12 appearances as FOX’s featured game.
• Penn State will host FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff for the fourth time in Happy Valley after welcoming the show in 2022 (Ohio State, 10/29) and 2023 (Michigan, 11/11).
• The broadcast will begin at 10 a.m. and lead up to kickoff between the Nittany Lions and Bruins at noon.
• The crew of Rob Stone, Reggie Bush, Mark Ingram, Matt Leinart, Brady Quinn and Urban Meyer will be live ahead of the meeting, while the in-game crew of Gus Johnson, Joel Klatt and Jenny Taft will call the action.

GET UP, ITS GAMEDAY

• ESPN’s College GameDay Built by The Home Depot will be live from Happy Valley on Saturday.
• This is the 26th time College GameDay has been at the site of a Penn State game and the 11th time the show has originated from Happy Valley.
• Penn State-Ohio State will be the featured game on College GameDay for the 13th time, breaking a tie with Alabama-LSU as GameDay’s most frequent matchup.
• Saturday’s GameDay appearance will the first in University Park since 2021 against Auburn.

STORIED PROGRAMS MEET

• Penn State and Ohio State both rank among the top-10 programs in winning percentage and total victories in NCAA history.
• Four of the top-10 winningest programs, by total wins and winning percentage, in NCAA history are from the Big Ten.
• Penn State sits No. 7 in all-time victories (937) and No. 9 in winning percentage (.690).
• Ohio State sits tied-second with 970 all-time victories and No. 1 with an all-time winning percentage of .734.
• The Nittany Lions and Buckeyes are also among the most ranked teams in NCAA history according to the AP poll.
• Ohio State has spent 105 weeks ranked No. 1 in the AP Poll (2nd all-time) and Penn State has earned the No. 1 ranking by the AP on 21 occasions (T-17th all-time). (Not including preseason rankings).
• Penn State’s 705 weeks ranked among the AP Top 25 ranks ninth all-time, while Ohio State’s 992 weeks are the most in NCAA history.

WISCONSIN NOTES

• This marks the 20th time Penn State has started a season 7-0 and the third time under James Franklin (2017, 2019).
• Penn State is 4-0 to start Big Ten play for the eighth time and the third time under Franklin (2017, 2019).
• Penn State S Jaylen Reed recorded an interception and returned it 19 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter.
• It was Penn State’s first interception return for a touchdown since Dominic DeLuca’s 26-yard return against Delaware in 2023 and PSU’s first interception return for a touchdown against a Big Ten opponent since Curtis Jacobs’ 47-yard return at Michigan in 2022.
• Penn State limited Wisconsin to 81 rushing yards, including just 10 rushing yards in the second half.