Penn State Nittany Lions at #16 Nebraska Cornhuskers Preview

This Saturday at 3:30, the #16 Nebraska Cornhuskers will host the Penn State Nittany Lions. The Nittany Lions come into Lincoln, Nebraska with a 6-3 record (with a 4-1 record in the B1G). Nebraska is sporting a 7-2 overall record (with the same 4-1 record in the B1G).

Penn State didn't start the season off the way they had hoped. After all the drama and change of the offseason, Penn State began their season 0-2, losing to the Ohio Bobcats and the Virginia Cavaliers. However, since then, they've lost one more, against the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Matt McGloin will look to air it out against the Cornhusker defense.

A big reason Penn State has been doing so well is their senior quarterback Matt McGloin. McGloin has went 211/340 for 2,436 yards and 18 touchdowns. And he's only thrown three picks. Quite impressive. One of his favorite targets is sophomore wide receiver Allen Robinson, who has caught 57 pass for 689 yards and 8 touchdowns.

Another factor on the Nittany Lion offense is sophomore running back Zach Zwinak, who has carried the ball this season 117 time for 545 yards and three touchdowns.

But if we get into the running game of this matchup Saturday, we can't ignore what the Nebraska Cornhuskers can do on the ground. Nebraska is ranked sixth in the nation for rushing yards in a game. That is thanks to two players. Junior quarterback Taylor Martinez, and sophomore running back Ameer Abdullah. Martinez, who has thrown for 1,941 yards and 18 touchdowns, has also rushed for 666 yards, and rushing in 8 touchdowns. Meanwhile, Abdullah has scored 8 rushing touchdowns as well, and carried the ball 151 times for 826 yards. This duo is incredible.

Taylor Martinez is a threat in the air, and on the ground.

Martinez will not only be looking to run over the Nittany Lion defense on Saturday, but he will also look to air it out against them. Most likely he will toss the ball to Kenny Bell a bit in Memorial Stadium. Bell, who is a sophomore, has 33 receptions on the year for 622 yards and 6 touchdowns. The Cornhusker passing game however, isn't ranked anywhere near their rushing in the nation, as their passing yards per game is averaging about 217 yards (making them ranked 80 in the nation).

Another big stat that we can't forget, is points scored on the teams. Although Penn State has lost one more game than Nebraska, their ranked 14th in the nation for points scored against them, with an average of only 17. Nebraska is ranked 54 in the same category, allowing an average of 25.

Keys to this game are simple. Penn State will be looking for Matt McGloin to have a big game, throwing the ball and spreading out that Nebraska defense. Meanwhile, they'll be keeping an eye on Taylor Martinez, and Ameer Abdullah. Penn State will need to shut down Nebraska's pass and rush, because Martinez is that dual-threat quarterback that can tire out a defense.

Nebraska is supposed to win this one by about eight points. I wouldn't be surprised if they did. However, I wouldn't be shocked if Penn State found a way to shut down the Cornhuskers, and pull this one out in Lincoln. Either way, I see this one being a good game. Make sure to tune in to ABC at 3:30 for this chess match!

- Matt Lytle

@mattlytle