Week 5 of the college football season is packed with thrilling matchups, but few games carry as much intrigue as No. 6 Oregon traveling to Happy Valley to face No. 3 Penn State in a Big Ten showdown.
This contest is a rematch of last season’s Big Ten Championship, which Oregon won, though the Ducks later fell to Ohio State in the College Football Playoff. Meanwhile, Penn State advanced to the semifinals before being eliminated by Notre Dame.
Oregon has turned to Heisman hopeful Dante Moore at quarterback, who replaced Cleveland Browns rookie Dillon Gabriel. This will be Moore’s first true road start, and a night game in front of a white-out crowd in Happy Valley promises to be one of the toughest environments he’ll face against an experienced Nittany Lions team led by senior QB Drew Allar.
Off the field, Allar made headlines on Thursday, just days before the huge matchup, by signing an NIL deal with Venmo. As part of the deal, he will become the face of Penn State’s new Venmo Debit Mastercard.
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The Nittany Lions’ star quarterback spoke about his partnership with Venmo following, highlighting how the platform has become a staple in college athletics.
“Whenever we go out to eat or something like that, we’re just splitting the bill. And instead of having to divide it up between four credit cards, just have one credit card and then we put the payment on Venmo,” Allar said, via On3. “When we go out and play golf, covering rounds, or each other, too. It’s very multiple in the way you can use it. I’ve appreciated that about it, not having to carry cash on me all the time, I can just Venmo somebody that I need to.
“It was a cool opportunity for me to partner with a company or a brand that I use on a regular basis,” he added. “Since I’ve gotten here at Penn State, it is like the first time I really started using Venmo, and it’s helped me out a lot.”
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Both Penn State and Oregon enter Saturday’s game unbeaten, but neither has faced a truly significant test yet. The Nittany Lions, in particular, have had one of the easiest non-conference schedules in recent memory, making this matchup even more critical — it will be the first time either team is seriously challenged this year.
ESPN’s “College GameDay” will be on campus to preview the matchup, though kickoff isn’t scheduled until 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC.
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