Penn State's final non-conference matchup of the year is here.

The Nittany Lions host Villanova on Saturday before transitioning to facing only Big Ten teams the rest of the way once October arrives. Both teams enter the contest undefeated, as the Wildcats topped Richmond on Saturday while PSU beat Auburn.

Here's everything you need to know to get ready for the week.

Kickoff is set for Noon ET, and the Big Ten Network will televise the contest. Steve Jones and Jack Ham will also call the game per the usual on the Penn State Sports Network.

Penn State is a 29.5-point favorite.

Tuesday will feature player interviews and a lengthy news conference with Franklin. On Wednesday, there will be more player calls in addition to a chance to watch practice plus another opportunity to interview Franklin and a player.

Thursday brings the Penn State Coaches Show, which Franklin typically appears on for the last half hour, and that will be it for the week until Saturday after the game.

The Wildcats are an FCS team, of course. They started the year by beating Lehigh 47-3 before blasting Bucknell 55-3 before topping Richmond by a 34-27 mark thanks to a 21-point fourth quarter. It's interesting to note that last Saturday's game, which had 12,001 fans in the stands, was the biggest crowd the team has played in front of this season.

Mark Ferrante is in his fifth season at Villanova, where he sports a 24-14 mark. The team made the FCS Playoffs on his watch back in 2019.

Quarterback Daniel Smith has thrown eight touchdown passes to two interceptions this season and has completed almost 65 percent of his passes for 598 yards. He's also scored three rushing touchdowns.

Justin Covington is the team's leading rusher with 44 carries for 307 yards and two scores, while Jaaron Hayek is the leading receiver after hauling in 13 passes for 202 yards and three scores.

Defensively, linebacker Forrest Rhyne has a team-high 13 tackles, and defensive back Christian Benford has four interceptions over three games.

--Penn State is 4-1-1 all-time against Villanova. The sides last met in 1949, when the Wildcats won, 27-6.

--Bill Connelly of ESPN has just a 12-point gap between the sides in his SP+ rankings model, which is probably not predictive of anything but might signal that Villanova is not as bad as you might expect.

--The Nittany Lions will be seeking their 13th consecutive non-conference victory.

Here's what Weather.com has to say:

"Intervals of clouds and sunshine. High 68F. Winds WNW at 5 to 10 mph."

--Is the dreaded letdown game coming up for Penn State? After all, the Lions have had a brutal three-game stretch and now get a foe that, on paper, they have every conceivable edge over by a wide margin. We'll bet on the answer to that question being a no, but it'll be talked about.

--Assuming we are correct, a lot of the conversation this week is going to focus on how this could be another opportunity for the backups to see significant playing time. Much of that conversation will focus on second-string quarterback Ta'Quan Roberson, but we would like to see more of some other guys who played well against Ball State, as well.

--Will it finally be the week we see defensive lineman Hakeem Beamon in action? He's so far been unavailable, but Keaton Ellis and John Lovett made their season debuts against Auburn, so now we turn to thinking solely about when Beamon might finally hit the field.

--Penn State's rushing attack didn't really get going again opposite Auburn, but there's no reason that should be the case in this matchup. Expect Franklin to be asked about what he's seeing with that part of the offense on Tuesday and Wednesday.

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