UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Could Penn State beat Ohio State? Well, sure, anything is possible in sports, which we saw during the miraculous kick-6 victory in 2016.
As if you need yet another reminder ...
While Nittany Lion fans will be hoping to pull off some magic again next week, almost everyone who shows up at Beaver Stadium will do so thinking the No. 2 Buckeyes are the better team and will win the game.
Because, the reality is the Buckeyes are indeed the better team, and should win the game.
But this is sports. And crazy things can happen in sports.
Ohio State opened as a big favorite in betting lines released Sunday. The Buckeyes are favored by 15 points, which is a huge number considering Penn State is the No. 13 team in the country and playing at home.
Still, we all saw how Michigan destroyed the Lions two weeks ago, 41-17, and pretty much everyone believes Ohio State is better than Michigan.
Including yours truly.
So, how are we to view this week's showdown?
The biggest game of the season. The biggest game of every season, really, since anything and everything Penn State wants to accomplish has to be judged through the lens of how it compares to Ohio State.
Here's the good news: From my view, Penn State matches up better against Ohio State than it did against Michigan, so therefore, should be able to compete better against the Buckeyes.
Michigan has a tremendous offensive line and running game, while the Lions' weakness on defense is the linebackers, first and foremost, and stopping the run in general. That combination of strength on weakness gave the Wolverines a big advantage, and they exploited it in a big way with 418 yards rushing.
The best part of Penn State's team is the secondary, and the Lions have been good against the pass all season. Ohio State has an incredible quarterback in C.J. Stroud, the Heisman Trophy frontrunner, and relies on its passing game more than Michigan does.
So, in this case, it will be strength on strength, and you'd think Penn State's secondary will be able to make things at least somewhat difficult on Ohio State's passing game. The Buckeyes run the ball well and have a good O-line, but perhaps is not necessarily as dominant in those areas as Michigan.
In theory, anyway.
Hey, we've got to try and find ways that Penn State might be able to stay close, and the fact that Penn State and Ohio State both rely more on speed than sheer brute strength, while Michigan is a brute strength team, would appear to be the biggest difference from a matchup standpoint.
James Franklin didn't want to talk much about Ohio State following Penn State's 45-17 win over Minnesota late Saturday night.
"I haven't broken down Ohio State yet," Franklin said.
"We all know that they're a good football team, and so we're gonna have to be ready to play. But I'd like to enjoy this for a few minutes, and then I'll get in early Sunday morning and we'll get started on these guys."
One of the most important things Penn State's 5-0 start did for the team was build confidence. That confidence had to be shaken after the blowout loss as Michigan, so bouncing back and routing the Gophers had to be great for everyone in terms of building the confidence level back up.
"We definitely got a lot of really good momentum going into this week," tight end Theo Johnson said.
Penn State usually plays Ohio State very tough, even when the Lions have been big underdogs. Ohio State was favored by 20 points in the 2016 meeting, and yet Penn State pulled off a stunning 24-21 victory.
Last year, Sean Clifford threw for 361 yards, and the Lions trailed the Buckeyes just 27-24 midway through the fourth quarter in Columbus before losing, 33-24. The Buckeyes were favored by 19.5 points in that one, and yet the Lions gave them all they wanted.
I asked Clifford after the Minnesota game if playing Ohio State so tough last year gives the team some confidence this time around.
"I can't really say much about next week yet," Clifford said. "I haven't really watched them that much. I know that they're gonna be a tough test. ... We're going to work hard throughout the week, and we're going to be prepared and confident. I can definitely say that."
PENN STATE IN THE POLLS
The Lions moved up three spots to No. 13 in both the AP and coaches polls.
If Penn State were to win this game, its chances of making the College Football Playoff would skyrocket. The Lions would need to win out and have Ohio State beat Michigan at the end of the regular season, and if that happens, Penn State could win the Big Ten East if the tiebreakers go its way.
