SMU vs. Penn State Betting Preview

The line on SMU vs. Penn State has moved from Mustangs +8.5 to +9.

Betting Trends

• Penn State is 6-7 ATS (.462), its worst pre-bowl ATS record since 2020 (3-6, 333).

• Five of Penn State's seven home games have gone under the total, the highest home under percentage of any College Football Playoff participant.

• Penn State has won 19 straight home games as betting favorite, tied with Washington for 4th-longest active FBS streak (Georgia (31), Michigan (26), Tennessee (23))

• SMU has covered the spread in three of last four road games, including 34-27 win as 6.5-point underdog at Louisville on Oct. 5.

• This is SMU's third time as underdog this season (won each of previous two outright; at Louisville and vs.TCU)

What’s at Stake?

A trip to Arizona to face No. 8 Boise State (No. 9 CFP) in the Fiesta Bowl, one of the four CFP quarterfinals, on New Year’s Eve. The game is also a chance for SMU to prove it belongs with the nation’s best in the program’s first season in the ACC after moving over from the American Athletic Conference. The expanded CFP provides Penn State and coach James Franklin with an opportunity to shed its label as a program that’s frequently good but rarely great.

Key Matchup

Penn State’s dynamic duo of junior running backs Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton goes against SMU’s stout rushing defense. The Mustangs lead the ACC and are fourth nationally giving up 93.4 yards rushing per game — which for now is the lowest in program history. They allow only 2.74 yards per carry. Singleton is ninth in the Big Ten with 839 yards rushing, just ahead of Allen’s 822. Both had 100-yard games against No. 1 Oregon in the Big Ten championship game. The only individual 100-yard rushing game against the Mustangs was Louisville’s Isaac Brown, who went for 117 yards on Oct. 5.