Nov. 27, 2015
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State will wrap up its 2015 regular season with a trip to No. 5 Michigan State on Saturday afternoon.
Looking to snap a two-game slide after winning seven of their previous eight games, the Nittany Lions (7-4, 4-3) will battle the Spartans (10-1, 6-1) in a 3:30 p.m. kick (ESPN) inside Spartan Stadium.
"We've got another really good opportunity, you could make an argument maybe the top program in the conference right now (is Michigan State)," said Franklin. "They've got a culture of winning that they've established now. Again, they have talent on offense, defense and special teams and at each level, and they play smart. This is a tremendous opportunity for us. Looking forward to the opportunity to compete."
For the second-straight week and third time in 2015, the Nittany Lions will collide with a team ranked in the Top 12 of the national rankings. Penn State's trip to East Lansing on Saturday will mark its first since a 42-14 victory over the Spartans to close out the 2009 season.
Saturday's matchup will pit two of the nation's best defensive ends on the field in Nittany Lion Carl Nassib and Spartan Shilique Calhoun. Despite playing only three snaps against Michigan due to injury, Nassib still leads the country in sacks (15.5), tackles for loss (19.5) and forced fumbles (6). Calhoun is 18th in FBS in sacks with 8.5 and has 15 quarterback hurries.
Additionally, the game will feature two of the Big Ten's best quarterbacks in Christian Hackenberg and Michigan State's Connor Cook. Hackenberg has become PSU's career leader in passing yards (8,061), touchdown passes (46), completions (663), attempts (1,182), 200-yard passing games (20) and 300-yard passing games (9). Cook is the winningest quarterback in school history with a 32-4 record (.889) as the starter, including a 21-2 (.913) mark against Big Ten opponents. He is a finalist of the Unitas Golden Arm Award.
Led by head coach Mark Dantonio, Michigan State (10-1, 6-1 Big Ten) is the fifth-ranked team in the College Football Playoff rankings this week. The Spartans turned in a masterful defensive performance in a road victory over No. 3 Ohio State last week. Kicker Michael Geiger nailed a 41-yard field goal as time expired to knock off the Buckeyes, 17-14. The Spartan defense limited Ohio State to five first downs and 132 yards of total offense in the win. Michigan State's lone setback in 2015 came in the final seconds in a 39-38 decision at Nebraska.
In a series that dates back to 1914, Penn State and Michigan State will meet for the 30th time on Saturday. The Nittany Lions are 14-14-1 all-time against the Spartans and 5-8 in games at Michigan State.
Following the trip Michigan State, Penn State will await its bowl destination with the announcement coming on Dec. 6. The Nittany Lions are eligible to compete in their 46th bowl game.