BREAKING: Penn State football learns kickoff details for first cross-country conference road trip

Coming off its first conference win of the season, Penn State football will soon learn the full effects of the new-look Big Ten as the calendar turns to October. On Monday, James Franklin and the Nittany Lions learned the details of their upcoming trip to Los Angeles to face the USC Trojans in Week 7.

The Big Ten announced Monday afternoon that the Nittany Lions and Trojans will kick off at 3:30 p.m. ET, which is 12:30 on the Pacific Coast. The game will be broadcast on CBS.

Just in: Week 7⃣ kickoff times and network designations 👀#B1GFootball pic.twitter.com/NIPCjaEaVQ

— Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) September 30, 2024

Lincoln Riley and USC rallied from a 21-10 halftime deficit to beat Wisconsin 38-21 on Saturday. Currently ranked No. 11, the Trojans’ (3-1, 1-1 Big Ten) lone loss was at Michigan in the program’s conference debut. USC travels to face Minnesota this weekend.

USC leads the all-time series 6-4 dating back to 1923. The last time the two programs met in the 2017 Rose Bowl, the Nittany Lions fell 52-49 as a last-second field goal completed a 14-point fourth-quarter comeback for the Trojans. Penn State last defeated USC in 1996, with the last win in Los Angeles coming in 1991.

Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Even after surrendering just seven points and out-gaining a top-20 Illinois team by 155 yards on Saturday, James Franklin isn’t hiding from the areas where Penn State (4-0, 1-0) needs improvement. Notably, Franklin is displeased with the Nittany Lions’ slow starts, an issue that could be amplified with his program’s cross-country travel in two weeks.

“We’ve got to be better on opening drives; the looks you’re expecting to get that you can go down the field to be successful,” Franklin said on Saturday. “That’s a week’s worth of preparation to open the game. Same thing on defense; we’ve got to break some tendencies that people aren’t as comfortable going down and make them [opponents] question their game and what they studied.

“But when you hold a Big Ten team to seven points, you have a chance to win a ton of games. I’m very proud of our defense and proud of Tom Allen and the defensive staff. When you hold people to seven points and 34 rushing yards against a Big Ten opponent, you give yourself a chance to win a lot of games.”

Penn State football will host the Trojans’ cross-town rival, UCLA, this coming Saturday on FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff.

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