– Last Updated on December 22, 2022 3:37 pm
Free Week 5 Prediction: Gophers vs Nittany Lions Odds
Looking for Minnesota Golden Gophers vs. Penn State Nittany Lions free picks? Week 5 College football betting sees the Gophers taking on the Nittany Lions Saturday October 3rd at Beaver Stadium in Happy Valley, Pennsylvania. Cappers Picks provides complimentary handicapping picks all NCAA football season long so stay tuned for more FREE college football predictions.
Week 5
(3-0) Minnesota Golden Gophers vs. Penn State Nittany Lions (2-2)
Date: Saturday, October 3rd
Time: 3:30 pm EST
Venue: Beaver Stadium, Happy Valley, Pennsylvania
NCAA Football Spread: PSU -3
NCAA Betting Total: 55
Live CFB Odds
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This battle of Big Ten teams should be an old fashioned slugfest. The undefeated Golden Gophers face against a Nittany Lions team that has underachieved this season.
Minnesota Golden Gophers
Mitch Leidner has played a lot of mistake free football in the first 3 games of the season. His ability to hold onto the ball has been key for the Golden Gophers.
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This week against Penn State I expect more game management from him. He should pass for around 200 yards and throw a touchdown pass, even though it may seem like a commodity as his 4 TD passes on the season came in 1 game.
Running back Rodney Smith has been red hot to start the season. He is averaging almost 100 yards per game and has scored in each game (total of 5).
This week he goes up against a Penn State defense that gave up over 300 yards on the ground to the Wolverines.
I expect him to continue his fine play with another score and at least 100 yards on the ground.
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Wideout Drew Wolitarsky has been the go to receiver for Leidner.
His ability to catch balls across the middle has made him the QB’s safety net. Going up against Penn state he won’t have a dynamic game, but will make enough clutch plays to keep the Gophers in it.
The Minnesota defense has played pretty well in their 3 victories. Last week against Colorado St. they held the passing game to 211 yards had 3 sacks.
I expect them to play good again this week against a Penn St. O-line that has been shaky the past couple of seasons
Penn State Nittany Lions
The Nittany Lions couldn’t do anything right on offense last week against the Wolverines.
As a team they had under 200 total yards of offense and will need to play much better against an improving Gopher defense.
Trace McSorley was sacked 6 times, and had a chunk of his 121 yards passing caught by receivers out of the backfield. This week he will get hit plenty, and the o-line will give up at least 4 sacks on the day.
The only good thing to come out of the 39 point beating last week was the play of tailback Saquon Barkely. He was a threat running and catching the ball.
Look for him to have a big game against the Gophers defense.
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The Nittany Lions gave up 6 rushing touchdowns to the Wolverines.
You can’t get punched in the mouth more than that.
You would expect the front seven to come out and play with urgency and their pride at stake, but I think the Gophers O-line will handle the defensive line without much trouble.
NCAA Football Handicapping Trends
- Golden Gophers are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games on grass.
- Golden Gophers are 1-6 ATS in their last 7 games following a straight up win.
- Golden Gophers are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 games after accumulating more than 200 yards rushing in their previous game.
- Nittany Lions are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 conference games.
- Nittany Lions are 0-6 ATS in their last 6 games following a straight up loss of more than 20 points.
- Nittany Lions are 0-5 ATS in their last 5 games after scoring less than 20 points in their previous game.
- Favorite is 3-0-1 ATS in their last 4 meetings.
- Home team is 3-1-1 ATS in their last 5 meetings.
- Golden Gophers are 1-4-1 ATS in their last 6 meetings.
Free Week 5 NCAA Football Prediction: Minnesota ATS, Under
The Gophers defense will pressure McSorley all day, and the ground game will dominate in the second half.
4* Free NCAA Betting Pick
Leidner plays a serviceable game and Rodney Smith leads the Golden Gophers to victory in a tight game.
Week 5 Free Score Prediction: Minnesota 21 – Penn State 14
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