Penn State Opens Up as Major Favorites Against the Marshall Thundering Herd

Penn State appears to have a nice "welcome to the year" game to start the season against the Marshall Thundering Herd. 

Marshall is scheduled to visit Beaver Stadium in Happy Valley in week one to kick off the year. This will be just the third matchup between the two in the history of the programs. The last time that they played each other was all the way back in 1930, nearly 100 years ago.

DraftKings Sportsbook released the opening line for the game, and it has Penn State as -23.5 point favorites in the game. 

This, on paper, is a huge advantage for the Nittany Lions. However, it is important in games like this to look the part. 

In 2025, there were a lot of fair questions and concerns to be asked of the Nittany Lions after three weird games against Nevada, Florida International, and Villanova. Penn State didn't dominate any of those games the way that they should have, and it turned out to be a sign of things to come. 

This time around, the Nittany Lions need to come out of the gate on fire, considering all of the circumstances. With the new coach, a mostly new team, lots of new faces, a new quarterback, and yet, the same expectations.

Penn State's game against Marshall in week one cannot be overstated how important it is. That game will be an absolute fork in the road for the program. If they come out, cover, and look good, the excitement around the program will skyrocket.

If they struggle and don't look clean in that game, all of the discomfort from 2025 would start to fester again. People around the program would become incredibly uncomfortable, and the same questions that were asked last year would resurface.

After that game, Penn State will have its first road game under Matt Campbell in Philadelphia against the Temple Owls. 

Again, on paper, these are two very winnable football games and what should be a great start to the Matt Campbell era. If these games go sideways, Penn State will be right back to where they started.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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