Penn State football’s full 2024 Big Ten schedule dates have been announced.
Last month, the Big Ten revealed its list of matchups for the 2024-28 seasons.
But we didn’t know the dates yet, and now we do.
Here they are
Sept. 28: Illinois
Oct. 5: vs. UCLA
Oct. 12: at USC
Oct. 19: Bye
Oct. 26: at Wisconsin
Nov. 2: Ohio State
Nov. 9: Washington
Nov. 16: at. Purdue
Nov. 23: at. Minnesota
Nov. 30: Maryland
Hours before everything became public, Brett McMurphy of the Action Network tweeted out some matchups that he gathered through sources.
McMurphy tweeted that Penn State would host UCLA Oct. 5, play at USC Oct. 12, host Ohio State Nov. 2 and host Washington Nov. 9. Many will see the most notable game of those four— and any of Penn State’s remaining five conference games— as the one at USC. Penn State hasn’t played at USC since 1991, when USC got a 21-10 win.
Penn State went onto win the Fiesta Bowl that season and finish No. 3. A receiver on that Penn State team was Terry Smith, who’s Penn State’s current cornerbacks and associate head coach. Smith was on James Franklin’s staff the last time PSU and USC played in general. That meeting took place in the Rose Bowl Jan. 2, 2017. USC won that one, 52-49, in one of the most thrilling Rose Bowls ever.
The week before USC, the other California team that’s starting play in the Big Ten next season, UCLA, will be coming to Beaver Stadium.
Penn State hasn’t played UCLA since 1968.
That series history has amounted to just six meetings played annually from 1963-68, of which Penn State won four, the most recent being in Joe Paterno’s first undefeated year of ‘68. Despite ending that season 12-0, Penn State didn’t get the chance to play for a national title. If Penn State finishes the 2024 regular season schedule undefeated, there won’t be a similar situation due to the expanded playoff from four to 12 teams starting next season.
