Fresh Off First Big Ten Win, Penn State Opens As Slight Underdogs vs. Washington

Vibes are high, finally, around the Penn State Nittany Lions program. Winning will do that, and it has been quite a while since there has been any positive momentum around the team, but they have that right now.

As things go in the Big Ten, there is literally no rest allowed in this conference. No matter what happens the week before, you have to flush it and move on quickly because there is another great team waiting for you the next Saturday. 

For Penn State, they have that exact scenario on their hands after their first Big Ten win last weekend. Up next for the Nittany Lions is a trip to Seattle to take on the Washington Huskies, who are experiencing their own struggles so far this year.

As it stands right now, the Nittany Lions are 2.5-point underdogs heading into this game against the Huskies. 

Washington enters Saturday with a 5-3 record overall and a 2-3 record within the conference. They have been an incredible disappointment this year, in a year when they believed they were going to try to make a run back to the College Football Playoff.

It was a three-game stretch to begin Big Ten play in which they suffered consecutive defeats within the conference. It began with a three-point loss to Minnesota, followed by a four-point loss to USC, before a 17-point defeat to the Iowa Hawkeyes.

They responded nicely with a win over Purdue in one of the weirdest football games that you will ever see, and then a narrow, yet impressive victory over the Nebraska Cornhuskers.

Their schedule is very bizarre, and their record could easily be several different combinations. Washington is a prime example of how tough the Big Ten is from top to bottom. This is a team that, if you don't give them your full respect, they can sneak anyone. They are also a team that, if you do give your full respect and you give a good effort, they are still good enough to beat you.

For as bad a start to Big Ten play as Penn State had, this is a week when they could erase a lot of the concern around this team. This is a daunting trip across the country into one of the great environments in college football. 

If the Nittany Lions can go west and get the job done, it will be a massive momentum boost for the program. They will have to do it by upsetting the Huskies, something that they absolutely have the ability to do.