Penn State’s long-awaited trip to Washington now has a window.
The Nittany Lions will play at Husky Stadium in Seattle on Nov. 7, and Big Ten officials announced Monday that the kickoff will land in the afternoon for fans on both coasts - either 3:30 p.m. or 4:15 p.m. Eastern Time. That means an early-afternoon start in Seattle, following the same basic setup Penn State had for its first Big Ten trip to USC in 2024.
The exact start time and TV assignment are expected to be announced Saturday night or Sunday, after Penn State’s Halloween home game against Purdue.
All three teams involved - Penn State, Purdue and Washington - are coming off their lone open date of the 2026 season.
Penn State enters the Washington game on a four-game skid under first-year head coach Matt Campbell and remains one of only three teams still winless in Big Ten play. The Nittany Lions’ most recent outing was a 21-18 loss at Michigan on Oct. 17, a game that turned on three costly second-half turnovers.
Washington is trying to steady itself as well. The Huskies are 4-3 overall and 1-3 in Big Ten play under Jedd Fisch, and they’re coming off a much-needed win two weeks ago against Purdue in West Lafayette, Indiana. They’ll first head to Nebraska this Saturday.
The matchup will also mark another chapter in a series that has been mostly dormant in recent decades. Penn State beat Washington 35-6 in Beaver Stadium two years ago, and before that the teams’ only recent meeting came in the Fiesta Bowl after the 2017 season, another Penn State win. The schools haven’t played in Washington since 1921.
For Penn State, the second half of the season needs cleaner, stronger football in a few key places. The biggest fixes, as the Lions try to halt the slide, would come from a more productive running game, a more disruptive pass rush and steadier play from senior quarterback Rocco Becht.
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Penn States next trip to Beaver Stadium has taken on an unusual feel, with tickets for the Purdue game showing up at prices that would have seemed unthinkable not long ago. Depending on the vendor, seats are listed starting around $9 to $11, a sign of how differently this matchup is being viewed compared with the kind of marquee fall Saturday that usually brings the place to life.
The backdrop is a Penn State program trying to steady itself in Matt Campbells first year, while Purdue enters with a reminder of how long it has been since the Boilermakers last beat the Nittany Lions, back in 2004. Even with the schedule already stretching into 2026, this one has turned into a strange snapshot of where Penn State stands right now, and how quickly the mood around a game can change when expectations do. [Read more 🡒]
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The quarterback situation remains at the center of the conversation, but the issues around it reach deeper than one position. Under coach Matt Campbell, Penn State is still trying to settle on an identity, while Purdue enters with some real momentum of its own and an offense that has shown more bite lately. The betting line and ticket availability suggest plenty of interest, but for Penn State the more pressing issue is whether the bye week brought answers or just more time to think about the same ones. [Read more 🡒]
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Penn State heads into its meeting with Purdue carrying a record that has made every remaining Big Ten game feel like a chance to steady the season. The schedule has eased a bit, and the Nittany Lions are still favored by more than a touchdown, but that number comes with plenty of caveats after an offense that has struggled to finish drives and a defense that has not always been able to paper over the issues.
The biggest question is whether the offense can finally turn trips inside the 20 into touchdowns instead of settling for frustration. One potential boost could come from Koby Howard returning to the mix, which gives Penn State another piece to lean on as it tries to find a cleaner rhythm, but the bigger test is whether the Nittany Lions can show they are more than just a heavy favorite with lingering problems. [Read more 🡒]