The Granddaddy of Them All will feature teams in the top 10 in The Associated Press poll and though not all the key players will be suiting up for Penn State and Utah, this still has the makings of an intriguing matchup on Monday.
Penn State receiver Parker Washington and cornerback Joey Porter Jr. as well as Utah cornerback Clark Phillips, running back Tavion Thomas, and tight end Dalton Kincaid are among the key players sitting out the Rose Bowl. That leaves more questions than answers coming into the matchup which will be played on Monday at 5 p.m. ET.
There has been little movement in the line as Utah opened as the 1-point favorite, and according to the college football odds, the Utes are now favored by two points.
Below, we have four proposition bets, highlighting some key players in both camps. Let’s check the latest college football odds, stats, injury reports, and college football lines for Penn State vs Utah. We’ve plenty of NCAA football odds for you to consider.
NCAAF: Penn State vs Utah Props
- The first score of the game to be a touchdown (-360)
- The team scoring first to lose the game (+145)
- The first points to come on a Penn State touchdown (+155)
- Neither team will score three times in a row (+195)
PATs Over Field Goals
Perhaps those who bet online would be interested to know that six times in Penn State’s 12 games, the opposing team opened the scoring with a field goal.
However, Utah is hardly the nation’s most prolific team when it comes to attempting and making field goals. The Utes are 10 of 14 on field goals this season and have just four field goals in the last three bowl games.
Back at it 💪 pic.twitter.com/cnDyQJHpj8
— Utah Football (@Utah_Football) December 30, 2022
Quarterbacks Sean Clifford of Penn State and Cameron Rising of Utah have combined for 11 touchdown runs and Rising’s two-point conversion run in a regular-season win over Southern California was one of the signature moments of the Utah season so it won’t be surprising to see the first points of the game coming on a touchdown. Clifford has 15 career scoring runs and Rising has 12 touchdown scampers over the last two seasons.
Keep an eye on Penn State receiver Brenton Strange who has opened the scoring with TD receptions twice this season.
- Pick: The first score of the game to be a touchdown (-360)
Rose Bowl Rally?
Utah might be heading into the Rose Bowl with its 10th season with at least 10 wins, but it hasn’t always been easy.
The Utes gave up the first points of the game in six of the last eight games and came away with the win four times during that span so an early deficit will not fluster the two-time defending Pac-12 champions.
Both Penn State and Utah have 4-2 records when allowing the opposing team to score first so it won’t be too surprising to see the team falling behind early and winning the game.
- Pick: The team scoring first to lose the game (+145)
Nittany Lions Ready To Roar
Utah scored first in 7t of 13 games and Penn State accomplished that feat in half of its 12 contests so these aren’t exactly the two fastest-starting teams in the country.
Utah ranks 53rd in points per game in the first quarter and 84th in points allowed in the opening quarter. Penn State is 12th in the country with an average of 3.5 points allowed in the first quarters of games this season.
It would be the lesser of two evils to go with Penn State to open the scoring with a touchdown.
- Pick: The first points to come on a Penn State touchdown (+155)
Expect Back-And-Forth Affair
One of the more surprising props is that a team scoring three times in a row is priced at -235. This game has the potential to come right down to the wire.
Utah did score four times in a row in the Pac-12 title game against USC and ended that contest with TDs on their last three possessions. However, in the other three games against ranked teams, there were no instances when a team had three unanswered scores.
Penn State did allow Michigan to score three times before getting on the board and then the Wolverines scored the game’s final 24 points. However, in the only other matchup against a ranked team, neither Penn State nor Ohio State had more than two scoring drives in a row.
- Pick: Neither team will score three times in a row (+195)
