Forecast Line on Maryland vs. Penn State Week 5 at Lions -5.5

The forecast line on Maryland vs. Penn State was Nittany Lions -5.5. 

Penn State beat Pittsburgh 17-10 in Week 3. 

Down a touchdown with the ball at the Penn State 1 and less than 5 minutes on the clock Saturday, Coach Pat Narduzzi opted to attempt a field goal on fourth down instead of going for it. Alex Kessman's 19-yard kick clanged off the left upright, helping give the Nittany Lions the breathing room they needed to escape with the victory.

The offensive line had issues with Pitt's exotic blitz packages, allowing QB Sean Clifford to be sacked three times and get hit hard a handful of others. That needs to be corrected with Michigan, Michigan State and Ohio State still on the schedule.

Clifford completed 14 of 30 passes for 222 yards while spending most of the afternoon under heavy duress.

"He's a winner," Penn State tight end Pat Freiermuth said of Clifford. "Our whole team knew he's a winner from the start. We could tell in camp. He's not going to go down easy. You can keep hitting him, but he's going to keep getting back up."

Maryland was not so lucky in their Week 3 game versus Temple.

Kenny Yeboah put Temple ahead on a one-handed touchdown catch late in the fourth quarter, and the Owls used two clutch stops at the goal line to beat No. 21 Maryland 20-17 on Saturday.

- Mary Montgomery, Gambling911.com