The No. 9 Penn State Nittany Lions (3-0) open Big Ten play by hosting the No. 19 Illinois Fighting Illini (4-0), who have surprisingly started this season undefeated. The Illini and No. 5 Tennessee are the only teams with two wins over ranked teams in Week 5. Illinois beat Kansas in Week 2 and then upset Nebraska in an overtime affair on the road last weekend. The last time Illinois came to Penn State, these teams played nine overtimes, with the Illini getting the better of a top-ten Penn State team. Read on to find out the key storylines and how to watch this Top 20 matchup on Saturday.

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Illinois

The Fighting Illini are off to their third 4-0 start since 1950, and it’s an unexpected start as the team had to go through two ranked teams to get there. Last week’s overtime win at Nebraska was particularly impressive, opening Big Ten play. Head coach Bret Bielema is in his 4th year^Th season in Champaign, where he had an up-and-down tenure. Whether this proves to be an “up” year on Bielema’s record will likely depend on the team’s current playing time, as five of seven contests between Week 2 and Week 9 will be against ranked opponents.

Illinois’ success is largely due to strong – if sometimes inconsistent – defensive play and an efficient team Luke Altmyer at quarterback, who is the only player in FBS with at least 10 pass TDs and no interceptions. This is a huge turnaround for Altmyer, who threw 10 interceptions last season. However, Penn State will be the toughest defense he has faced to date, and he threw four interceptions against the Nittany Lions last year.

Illinois’ defense, particularly in the secondary, will look to challenge Penn State’s passing game on Saturday. Entering Week 5, the Illini have seven interceptions this season, the most in the Big Ten. CB Xavier Scott and security Miles Scott (no relation) are the stars of the secondary; after the Scott duo forced four turnovers in the team’s Sept. 7 win over Kansas, head coach Bret Bielema referred to it as “the new ‘Scott & Scott Law Firm’.”

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Penn State

The No. 9 Nittany Lions begin conference play this weekend. Penn State is considered a major beneficiary of conference realignment and the new 12-team playoff, as the team now has a path to the Big Ten title game without having to go through both Michigan and Ohio State in the Big Ten East. Even when these divisions existed, Penn State recently repeatedly finished in the top 12 but was never selected for the playoffs and therefore failed to finish in the top four. Now the path seems to be clear for them.

The team has shown great improvement and changes on offense under the new coordinator Andy Kotelnickiwho brought a creative style that helped allow the QB-led unit to make more big plays Drew Allar. Allar’s most telling stat may be that he is second in the FBS in yards/attempt this season, a far cry from an offense that rarely stretched the field in 2023. The passing game benefits from a strong duo in the backfield in RBs Kaytron Allen And Nicholas Singleton.

How to watch the Illinois Fighting Illini vs Penn State Nittany Lions game

• When: Saturday September 28th
• Where: Beaver Stadium in University Park, Pennsylvania
• Time: 7:30 p.m. ET (Pregame coverage begins at 7:00 p.m. ET)
• Regard: NBC, peacock

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