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Offense
Penn State: There are only a few things we probably know for sure. Rocco Becht is one of the most experienced quarterbacks in all of college football, and that can only help the Lions. There are also some key studs on the offensive line who should be good no matter their school. We'll see about the backs and receivers.
Marshall: Thundering Herd quarterback Carlos Del Rio-Wilson threw for over 2,000 yards and ran for a school record for rushing yards for a quarterback last year. Del Rio-Wilson, who is the 2026 Sun Belt preseason offensive player of the year, had 23 total touchdowns a year ago. Of course, none of those numbers were against the quality of schools that the Big Ten offers.
Advantage: Penn State
Defense
Penn State: The million-dollar question is how will a beefed up defensive line help the Lions this season? It certainly doesn't hurt to put some big boys in the trenches, rather than an athletic defensive line group, in the Big Ten. The Lions also officially named Caleb Bacon as a defensive end on the roster this week. He played outside linebacker primarily at Iowa State.
Marshall: There are a couple preseason all-Sun Belt selections in the secondary, but it's hard to imagine they've seen anyone with the speed they will see vs. the Lions' receivers. The Herd's defense gave up 30 points per game last season, but those numbers are a little misleading with 45 points given up against Georgia and two more games that went to double overtime.
Advantage: Penn State
Special teams
Penn State: Ryan Barker is quietly turning into one of the better placekickers in program history. He's currently ranked at the top in career field-goal percentage, and has been known to be clutch when he needs to be, i.e. the game-winner at USC two years ago. We'll see what the punting game brings. Ditto in the kickoff and punt return game, but it would be hard to imagine leaving Howard out of at least one of them.
Marshall: The team lost an All-American kicker in Lorcan Quinn to graduation last year. The Thundering Herd will have new players at both kicker and punter, which isn't ideal to make your debut in a venue like Beaver Stadium.
Advantage: Penn State
Coaching/intangibles
Penn State: Athletic director Pat Kraft found his man in Matt Campbell late in the coaching search in December, but many experts around college football say Kraft couldn't have handpicked a better coach to fit with the Lions. There's been a lot to like about Campbell so far in his first nine months, but now it's time to look at him through a microscope in game action.
Marshall: Tony Gibson was hired after the 2024 season to pick up where former Penn State running backs and special teams coach Charles Huff left off. Huff moved on to Southern Miss for a year and is now the head man at Memphis. Meanwhile Gibson, who was the defensive coordinator at North Carolina State before last year, was 5-7 in his first year in Huntington in 2025.
Advantage: Penn State
Prediction: It's hard to really know what to expect in Penn State's first season opener without James Franklin since 2013. I'm not sure how much we're going to find out about this team in non-conference action, kind of like last season. But, really, this shouldn't be a problem for the Nittany Lions against a Sun Belt opponent that struggled last year. Penn State 45, Marshall 21
Andy Stine is filling in this week for Chris Masse of the Williamsport Sun-Gazette, who was covering the Little League World Series.