Big Ten

No. 12 Penn State hosts the banged-up Boilermakers

Updated Mar. 5, 2020 12:39 a.m. ET

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Purdue (1-3, 0-1 Big Ten) at No. 12 Penn State (4-0, 1-0), Saturday at 12 p.m. EDT (ESPN).

Line: Penn State by 28 1/2.

Series record: Penn State leads 14-3-1.

WHAT'S AT STAKE

The Nittany Lions will look to keep their high-powered offense rolling against a team they haven’t hosted since 2013. The banged-up Boilermakers will try to persevere after losing QB Elijah Sindelar and WR Rondale Moore to injuries on the same play a week ago.

KEY MATCHUP

Purdue’s running game vs. Penn State’s front seven: With their passing game down its best two players, the Boilermakers will need to get something going on the ground. RB King Doerue has upped his yards-per-carry average in each game and finished with 94 yards on 20 carries and two touchdowns last week. He’s up against a defense that’s averaging 9.8 tackles for loss and hasn’t allowed a player to rush for 100 yards this season.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Penn State: WR KJ Hamler. The speedster burned through Maryland’s secondary last week with 108 yards on six catches, none better than a 58-yard, high-stepping gallop to the end zone to break the game open in the first quarter. The Boilermakers, who are allowing 296 passing yards per game, have surrendered 10 passing touchdowns and Penn State wants to get Hamler the ball even more.

Purdue: QB Jack Plummer. A big, strong-armed quarterback, Plummer will be making his first start on the road. The Boilermakers will likely need some big plays from their QB to keep pace with Penn State’s high-scoring offense.

FACTS & FIGURES

Penn State QB Sean Clifford posted his best statistical game going 26 for 31 for 398 yards and three TDs last week against Maryland where his 287 yards in the first half were a program record. … Sindelar had surgery to repair a broken collarbone on Monday. … Penn State has won eight straight against Purdue. … The Boilermakers’ last win in the series was in 2004. … Purdue’s defense is allowing 32.5 points and 451 total yards per game. … The Boilermakers allowed Minnesota QB Tanner Morgan to complete 95 percent of his passes last week. … Penn State is 71-23-5 all time in Homecoming games.

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