And so it seems we have come to the end of the road. This will be the final blog on Penn State football for the 2017-2018 season. Throughout the year we have had our ups and downs, our highs and lows,we laughed and cried. It was a successful season by many standards. Next Saturday, April 21st, is the annual Blue White game. This is the culmination of spring practice and the first time the fans and coaches get to see what the team will look like in the fall. All eyes will be on the early enrollee, Micah Parsons. You would be hard pressed to find a more highly touted prospect in the last ten years at Penn State, and the expectations are sky high. My prediction for the game is that Blue covers the 15 1/2 point spread easily. Look for Trace to light up the secondary and watch out for Tommy Stevens in his role as lion.
The best part about Blue White is that it means the season is around the corner. With this in mind, I am going to lay out my full projections for next season so when it comes true I can point to it in writing and say, “HA! I told you so”.
Saturday, September 1 Appalachian State at. Penn State. This game is no easy roll over. App State is dangerous. PSU gets it down thanks to the defense. PSU 31 App State 14.
Saturday, September 8 Penn State at PITT. PITT finished last season with an upset of then undefeated and 2nd ranked Miami. PITT is by no means an elite team, but they will be much improved. Anything can happen in rivalry games, but I believe the Lions come away with he victory. PSU 27 PITT 17
Saturday, September 15. Kent State at PSU. Chalk up a w. PSU 45 Kent State 10
Saturday, September 21. PSU at Illinois. Game before the big one. Avoid injuries. Bench starters second half. PSU 42 Illinois 6.
Saturday, September 29. Ohio State at Penn State. This is it. The big one. The East hangs in the balance with this game. An early matchup in September bodes well for the Lions as Urban Meyer’s teams historically play poorly early on and catch fire late in the season. My prediction, and inexperienced QB cant handle the electricity of Beaver Stadium at night. PSU 21 OSU 17.
Saturday, October 13. Michigan State at Penn State. IF, and I mean IF PSU can take down OSU, this game is of incredibly high importance. PSU needs revenge, and its at home, after a bye. This is a must win. PSU gets revenge in a big way. PSU 31 MSU 14.
Saturday October 20. PSU at Indiana. Slow start, give us a w. PSU 35 IU 20.
Saturday October 27. Iowa at PSU. Our Achilles heel. Survive and advance. PSU 20 Iowa 17.
Saturday, November 3 PSU at Michigan. Tough game, two great teams. Assuming UM sorts out their QB issues, PSU’s luck runs out. PSU 24 UM 28.
November 10. Wisconsin at PSU. Really tough opponent to play while feeling the hangover of a bitterly close loss. Avoid the loss at all costs. Slow start and turnovers nearly cost them but they get it down. PSU 31 Wisconsin 27.
November 17. Rutgers at PSU. Is Rutgers D1? PSU 56 Rutgers 3.
November 24. PSU at Maryland. Eh WWWWWW. PSU 35 Maryland 10.
Thanks for following along all year!
the #dontbethatguy goes to Henry Detesky. Look him up, you’ll understand.
Hi Matt,
I don’t really follow football, but I think you did a great job of wrapping up the season and predicting how next year’s games will play out.
I think it’s really fascinating how, so soon before a game has even been played, you can make these kind of predictions just based on coaches and players.
The season you’ve predicted looks like a pretty great one, so I hope it works out the way you’ve planned it!
Overall, great blog, and I think you executed it very well.
–Natalie Cummings