Penn State vs West Virginia Prediction, Odds & Picks – 8/31/2024

The Penn State Nittany Lions are set to take on the West Virginia Mountaineers in Morgantown on August 31, 2024, with the Nittany Lions favored by 8.5 points according to DraftKings Sportsbook. Currently, 81% of spread bets are backing Penn State, while 19% are supporting West Virginia. The total of 51.5 has seen 45% of bets on the under and 55% on the over. Don't miss out on this exciting matchup between these two power conference teams, one where Penn State puts its top-10 ranking on the line on the road.

Coordinator Changes the Story For Penn State

Penn State won 10 games last season, going 10-3 despite finishing third in their own division in the Big Ten. This season, with divisions no longer a concern in their conference, the Nittany Lions hope not to be decimated by Ohio State and Michigan again in 2024. But some changes to their coaching staff could make for a challenging start to the season for the team from Happy Valley.

Penn State has a new offensive and defensive coordinator this year, with Andy Kotelnicki taking over as offensive coordinator and Tom Allen as defensive coordinator. As long as the execution on the field is fine, these changes shouldn't be the end of the world. But in a sport like college football where the margins are so thin, changes to who is calling the plays and making the decisions can make a difference early in the season while teams are still getting things figured out.

West Virginia Looks to Avenge 2023 Loss to Penn State

Last year, West Virginia was beaten on the road by Penn State by 23 points, with the Mountaineers offense never really getting in gear in that contest. For the second straight season, the Mountaineers will open their season against the Nittany Lions. But West Virginia is the home team this time around and they hope that means a better performance from quarterback Garrett Greene against this opponent from the Big Ten.

Greene only completed 52.9% of his throws last season and had just 2,406 passing yards. But to his credit, he did a good job of avoiding turnovers for the most part, only throwing four interceptions for the entire 2023 season. If he can avoid turning the ball over in this game, his team could hang around as an underdog at home.

Penn State vs West Virginia Best Bet

Instead of taking a side in this Penn State vs West Virginia matchup, we will look at the total instead. We like this game to go over the total of 51.5 points, as we should see better from Greene than we did a season ago, while Drew Allar is poised to have a bigger year with a new offensive coordinator as well. Look for these teams to combine to go over the total in what should be a fun one in Morgantown.

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