Despite the success that Illinois had prior to the game, the oddsmakers were still all over Penn State in this one. The Nittany Lions came into this game as massive favorites as the line favored them by 17.5 points, but the Fighting Illini ended up showing that they can compete with the best teams in the Big Ten.

Penn State remained at No. 8 in the ESPN College Football Power Index, which boosted Notre Dame one spot above the Nittany Lions at No. 7. The FPI gives Penn State a 60.7 percent

No. 9 Penn State arguably faced a test in its Big Ten opener, hosting No. 19 Illinois on Saturday. The Fighting Illini came into the matchup off a big win over then-No. 22 Nebraska in Lincoln, improving to 4–0 and looking like a possible factor in the conference race.