Penn State vs. USC: SI score prediction for College Football Week 7 ft. odds & picks

The No. 4-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions face the USC Trojans in Week 7 of the 2024 College Football season. The game will be held on Saturday at 3:30 pm ET and will be held at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

The 5-0 Nittany Lions are one of the few remaining undefeated programs left in college football. Their strong start to the season continued last week with their 27-11 win over the UCLA Bruins.

On the other hand, the Trojans have been inconsistent so far in the Big Ten. They come into this game with a 3-2 record overall (which included a win over the LSU Tigers) but a 1-2 record in the Big Ten. They suffered a shock 24-17 defeat to the Minnesota Golden Gophers last week and lost their ranked status due to this.

Penn State vs USC preview and prediction

For the Nittany Lions, it is all about their offense. Quarterback Drew Allar threw for 237 yards and a touchdown in the victory over UCLA last weekend. This bumped his total yardage for the season to 1,101, making him one of the better quarterbacks this season who may not be getting the attention he deserves.

The Nittany Lions run game should also be boosted by the return of Nick Singleton, who did not play against the Bruins due to an injury. The last-minute absence of Singleton caused the Penn State run game to drop below 100 yards for the first time this season. They will be hoping to resume normal service against a USC defense that has struggled recently.

The Trojans will hope to improve on their performance last week against the Golden Gophers. For most of that game, Lincoln Riley's men were leading. But a late comeback from Minnesota, followed by a controversial decision to allow a late touchdown, gave the Gophers a shock victory.

This game is essentially a must-win for USC if they want to have a spot in the College Football Playoff, something that quarterback Miller Moss realizes.

"We have two pretty clear choices: To double down on who we are, come closer as a team and go forward with a great opportunity this weekend, or let this affect us and deter us from what we ultimately want to do.” said Moss per the AP.

Sports Illustrated's SP+ Model predicts that the Nittany Lions will defeat the USC Trojans 28-23.

Penn State vs USC betting tips

FanDuel has the Nittany Lions as -4.5 favorites to win this game. They also have the total points scored in the game at 50.

From these odds, and using the SI+ predicted scoreline, fans should take Penn State to win (-115) and the over for the points total.

How can I watch Penn State vs USC?

The game between the Penn State Nittany Lions and the USC Trojans will kick off at 3:30 pm ET on Saturday.

The game will be broadcast on CBS. Meanwhile, paid subscription services like FuboTV and SlingTV are also available alternatives to allow fans to see this game.