OTB Staff Picks: Senior Day vs Penn State

Rutgers fans, it’s game day! Today, we will see the Scarlet Knights play one last time at home until the fall of 2026. In today’s game, Rutgers faces Penn State in a winner-take-all contest, with the winner earning bowl eligibility. As always, the staff here at On The Banks will try to predict the game’s outcome and give context for why they think that way.

Andrew Rice

Rutgers vs Penn State, senior day, the winner goes to a bowl game. I think that is how everyone imagined this season playing out. Despite the talent differentials between these two squads, the Knights have a real chance to pull this one out and go bowling for the third straight year. If they can force Penn State into a higher scoring game, then Rutgers should be able to pull out the win.

This is the scenario where I expect the Knights to empty out the playbook to get the win. Since they have to force Penn State into a higher scoring game, they should be looking to take advantage of everything they have. Don’t be surprised if they have something special up their sleeve for this game.

The Lions have had some issues in their secondary. If Rutgers can exploit this and use their three NFL-caliber wide receivers effectively, it has a really good shot at forcing Penn State into a game it doesn’t want to play. To fully do this, the Knights will have to stop the Lions a few times on the ground to break away. Since the defense has looked much better in recent weeks, they should be able to do this a few times. I have been positive quite a few times with these predictions, and I won’t stop here.

Rutgers 28, Penn State 24

Arnav Sarkar

It doesn’t get bigger than this. Bowl eligibility is on the line when 5-6 Rutgers hosts 5-6 Penn State at SHI Stadium on Saturday (imagine saying that before the season started). It has been a season from hell for the Nittany Lions, although they have come out the other side strong under interim coach Terry Smith, defeating Michigan State and blowing out Nebraska 37-10 under the lights at Beaver Stadium last Saturday.

For Rutgers, it hasn’t exactly been an easy road either. From the opening scare against Ohio to the heartbreaking losses to Iowa and Minnesota, to the deflating feelings of blowouts against Oregon and Illinois, it appeared that this team could only beat the weaker teams and not any of substance. But to their credit, they responded with a tone-setting victory against Maryland and played a competitive game at Ohio State, despite the lopsided score.

However, it’s hard for me to see Rutgers being able to get a victory with most of the matchups in this contest favoring the Nittany Lions. Penn State may have the best tandem of running backs the Knights have seen all year, and they have failed to stop the run against much lesser backs in the past.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Penn State pass rush (and defensive unit as a whole) is once again playing with fire, and with a struggling offensive line, that does not bode well for Athan Kaliakmanis. The Lions were able to largely keep Emmitt Johnson from taking over last week, although he still went for 103 yards rushing.

As Andrew said, if Rutgers can get the Lions into a shootout, forcing Grunkemeyer to make plays to his uninspiring wide receivers, the Scarlet Knights should be able to win the game, mixing the pass with a healthy dose of Antwan Raymond. However, it’s challenging for me to envision a scenario where PSU cannot run the ball and simultaneously struggles to stop the Rutgers offense more often than not.

The Scarlet Knights eclipse 10 points against Penn State for the first time since entering the Big Ten, and prevent an embarrassment, but the Nittany Lions go bowling to the dismay of the faithful Rutgers fans on Saturday.

Penn State 34, Rutgers 21

John Catapano

This is how we all drew up the season, right? Two 5-6 squads battling for bowl eligibility on the final Saturday of the regular season. The Nittany Lions had championship aspirations entering the season, but those hopes quickly dissolved after losses to UCLA and Northwestern.

Penn State has a balanced offensive attack, averaging 179 yards per game (ypg) through the air and 166 ypg on the ground. The Lions’ leading receiver is Trebor Pena, the Syracuse transfer, who has hauled in 40 catches for 414 yards, but it’s the ground game where Penn State excels.

On a blustery Saturday in Piscataway, expect the Lions to run early and often with star rusher Kaytron Allen, totaling 1087 yards on the ground this season, and likely to find success against a porous Rutgers defense that treats the edge like an electrified fence.

For Rutgers, the plan on offense is simple – drive the ball downfield in chunks to star receivers KJ Duff (43 yards shy of 1,000), Ian Strong, and DT Shefflield, and let 1,086-yard rusher Antwan Raymond and bruising change-of-pace back Jashon Benjamin ground and pound.

I think Rutgers competes in this game. It’s senior day for the home team, and I have my doubts Penn State fans will take over the stadium with their playoff hopes gone. The cold, hard fact is, though, that Rutgers hasn’t defeated Penn State since 1988. Please prove me wrong, Scarlet Knights. Penn State pulls away late.

Penn State 31, Rutgers 24