This article is part of our College Football Picks series.
College Football Picks: Penn State vs. Iowa Best Bets
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Now that we are in Week 4 of the college football season, we will start getting some proper conference matchups. Also, we're finally getting an excellent selection of games between ranked teams, including the seventh-ranked Nittany Lions hosting the 24th-ranked Hawkeyes at night in Happy Valley. It will be a "White Out" game, but how does it look from a betting standpoint?
Penn State vs. Iowa Betting Odds for Week 4
Spread: Penn State -14.5 (DraftKings Sportsbook)
Total: 40.5 (FanDuel Sportsbook)
Moneyline: Penn State -650 (DraftKings Sportsbook), Iowa +490 (FanDuel Sportsbook)
The DraftKings book believes in the power of the "White Out," or perhaps the futility of the Iowa offense. That'll take me to my best bet for this game.
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Penn State vs. Iowa Betting Picks for Week 4
In SP+, Penn State's defense is ranked fourth, and Iowa's is ranked first. Conversely, the Nittany Lions rank 21st offensively, while the Hawkeyes rank a lowly 81st. The "Drive for 25," for Brian Ferentz's sake, got a vital outpouring of 41 points last week, but that was against Western Michigan and featured several short fields for the Iowa offense. Meanwhile, the Drew Allar hype train hit a snag last week, as Illinois held him to a 48.5 completion percentage with 208 yards through the air and no touchdowns. Yes, that was on the road, and this game is at home, but Iowa is a step up defensively, even from Illinois.
If all that wasn't enough, and I assure you it was for me, the Hawkeyes will be without Kaleb Johnson (undisclosed) and Jaziun Patterson (undisclosed) in this one, their top two running backs. This could be detrimental to a team that hasn't had a viable passing offense in recent memory. That hook from FanDuel on the over/under made things all the more enticing.
Penn State vs. Iowa Best Bet: Under 40.5 (FanDuel Sportsbook)
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Penn State vs. Iowa Predictions for Week 4
I do not see the Hawkeyes' offense doing anything in this one. To me, it's more likely Iowa is shut out than it is that it scores 20 points. Penn State should win, but it could be a rock fight. Is Allar up for this one? The Nittany Lions scored 30 points against Illinois, but that was with Illinois turning the ball over a whopping five times. I expect Penn State to win a low-scoring affair, but maybe not comfortably, so I don't want any action on this spread.