It's Penn State-Northwestern week: Game time, spread, channel, streaming info, storylines, more

Penn State continues the October portion of its 2025 season on Saturday when it welcomes Northwestern to Beaver Stadium for Homecoming. It will not be a warm reception, as the Nittany Lions return to State College after losing to UCLA, 42-37, at the Rose Bowl, which was their second loss in as many weeks.

“Yeah, obviously we did not handle last week’s loss well,” Lions coach James Franklin said in Pasadena. “We also lost some players in that game during the week, and then everything else, travel, everything else, did not come out with the right energy to start the game. And before you know it, obviously they get a touchdown drive and onsides kick, and now you’re fighting. They gain confidence, and we’re fighting for the next three quarters. So that’s my responsibility, and I didn’t get it done.”

Our early preview gets you ready to start game week below.

Time and TV info

Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET. FS1 will televise the game. The broadcast crew is not yet out as of the time of this post’s publication.

What is the Penn State-UCLA point spread?

Penn State is favored by 22.5 points at BetMGM. The betting total over/under is 48.5 points.

Game week schedule for the Lions

Penn State head coach James Franklin will kick off game week with a news conference at Noon ET on Monday. He will speak from the media room at Beaver Stadium, and you’ll be able to watch it on the Blue-White Illustrated YouTube channel by 12:45 if you click here.

Tuesday will bring with it some player interviews with reporters via Zoom. Wednesday will feature some, as well, before a practice viewing availability for the media, followed by Franklin and some players speaking in the evening. Thursday features an assistant coach media call and Franklin’s weekly radio show. Then, the talking is done until after the game.

As for Northwestern, head coach David Braun will speak with reporters on Monday in Evanston.

What’s up with the Wildcats?

Two sentences I never thought I would write at any point this year are true: Penn State has the same record as Northwestern. And, the Wildcats have more Big Ten wins than the Nittany Lions to start game week. Braun’s team is 3-2. One of those wins is a conference triumph over the same UCLA team that just embarrassed James Franklin’s team. Its most recent win came 42-7 over ULM on Saturday.

“You’re seeing a young man that’s starting to find his rhythm…” Braun said. “When things were there passing, he took them. When they weren’t, he used his feet to be efficient or extend plays… “I’m proud of his continued development and he should be proud of himself.”

Quarterback Preston Stone has a 7-to-6 touchdown-to-interception ratio. He is not a runner, which should relieve the Lions this week. Running back Caleb Komolafe has a team-high four scores on the ground. Griffin Wilde is the leading receiver with 25 receptions for 375 yards. No other Wildcats pass catcher has more than 110 receiving yards. The top defender is defensive back Robert Fitzgerald, who has 42 stops on the season.

Weather report

Per Weather.com, a beautiful October day looks to be in the cards. The forecast reads as follows: “Mainly sunny. High 67F. Winds light and variable.”

Early Penn State-Northwestern storylines

–Penn State let one loss turn into two. Will it stop two setbacks from turning into three? All the things we wrote last week about it being a get-right game because of the talent difference apply again. But, obviously, all of that was irrelevant at UCLA.

–Will the Lions continue just to roll Dom DeLuca out there and hope for the best? There is no easy or obvious fix at linebacker. But trying something, anything new feels like a must.

–Could the Lions commit to making sure Kaytron Allen gets more touches this week? Or will it be more of the same?

–What will the crowd be like? If you decide to not attend, who could blame you?

–What’s your top storyline to start the week? Tell us inside The Lions Den forum!