No. 13 Penn State opens Big Ten play Saturday with a home date against Wisconsin, and the matchup comes with a few injury twists that could shape how the game unfolds at Beaver Stadium.
Penn State enters at 3-0, while Wisconsin arrives at 2-1 and has dropped four straight games in Beaver Stadium dating to 2003. The Nittany Lions are also trying to navigate the loss of their leading receiver, Koby Howard, who will not play. That absence opens the door for Zay Robinson to potentially step into a bigger role.
Howard is one of 11 Penn State players listed as out on the Big Ten availability report. Among the most significant names are defensive end Max Granville, who is out for the season, along with LaVar Arrington II, linebacker Cam Smith and cornerback Tyler Armstead. Armstead worked with the second team in Penn State’s Week 3 win over Buffalo.
Penn State also has two starters listed as questionable, and both could matter a lot on offense. Tight end Andrew Rappleyea left the Buffalo game with an injury and did not practice early in the week. Center Brock Riker played two series against Buffalo, but Campbell said he should be ready for Saturday.
Wisconsin’s injury situation is centered on running back Abu Sama III and receiver Malachi Coleman, both of whom are listed as probable, according to coach Luke Fickell. Campbell’s staff knows Sama well after he rushed for 732 yards at Iowa State last season. Sama sat out Wisconsin’s game last week against Eastern Michigan, but he told reporters in Madison that he’ll be ready Saturday.
The Badgers’ receiving group also includes Goodman, who was Wisconsin’s top receiver in the Week 1 loss to Notre Dame with four catches for 71 yards and the team’s only touchdown. He didn’t catch a pass in Week 2 against Western Illinois and did not play last week against Eastern Michigan. Goodman is now with his third Big Ten team after stops at Nebraska from 2023-24 and Minnesota last season.
For fans not inside Beaver Stadium, the game will stream exclusively on Peacock. The cheapest one-month Peacock subscription is $8.99, and fans with a streaming platform that includes NBCSN can also watch that way. Some streaming services offer free Peacock trials, including Prime Video.
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Penn State Already Faces An Uncomfortable Question About Life After Franklin
Penn States stumble at Beaver Stadium against Wisconsin in Matt Campbells Big Ten debut as head coach put an immediate spotlight on what life looks like after James Franklin. Coaching changes are never clean, especially when a new leader is being asked to steady a program with expectations as high as Penn States. Campbell arrives with a reputation as a builder, the kind of coach who needs time to shape a team in his image rather than simply patching over what came before.
For the Nittany Lions, the uncomfortable part is not just that the transition has begun, but that recent results have already started to look more fragile than the standard Franklin set in earlier years. This is the part of a changeover that programs hope to avoid, when every loss turns into a referendum on the new era and every uneven performance invites comparisons to the old one. Penn State is only at the beginning of that process, but the pressure to show progress is already very real. [Read more 🡒]
Penn State Has A Scheduling Problem Fans Cant Ignore
Penn State had plenty to feel good about when it took a 17-0 lead into halftime, but the second half against Wisconsin turned into a reminder that early control does not always mean a game is secure. The offense managed only a field goal after the break, while Wisconsin kept chipping away and eventually put up 24 points to flip the result. Matt Campbell acknowledged the missed opportunities afterward, and the loss fit a familiar pattern for a team that can look polished before the pressure really ramps up.
That is why the conversation around the Nittany Lions non-conference slate has become hard to ignore. An easier early schedule can help a team build confidence and stack wins, but it can also hide flaws that only show up once the calendar turns and the opponents get stronger. For Penn State, the concern is not just the loss itself, but whether the schedule has given a truer picture of what this team is before the tougher conference tests arrive. [Read more 🡒]
Penn State's Offense Hit A Troubling Low In Loss To Wisconsin
Penn States offense has had uneven stretches this season, but the loss to Wisconsin brought a new low in the grading as well as the scoreboard. Pro Football Focus gave the unit its worst mark of the year, while the defense, which held up far better, posted its second-highest grade of the season and had one of the days biggest bright spots in freshman Josiah Zayas.
Zayas finished with the top defensive grade on the team after returning an interception for a touchdown, a play that briefly gave Penn State some life. The other side of the ball told a harsher story, with quarterback Rocco Becht turning in a rough outing and several offensive linemen also drawing season-low grades, leaving the offense searching for answers after another frustrating night. [Read more 🡒]