Penn State's Koby Howard could return from injury for Purdue game

Penn State could have its most dangerous offensive player back just as its season reaches a turning point. Wide receiver Koby Howard has missed four games with an undisclosed injury and is now questionable for Saturday's home game against Purdue, coach Matt Campbell said Tuesday, according to the Reading Eagle. PennLive reported that Howard was back on the practice field Tuesday.

Campbell said the staff should know more by the end of the week. He also made clear he will not rush Howard back, telling the Reading Eagle he wants "the Koby that we saw in the first three games and not a shell of him." Those three games show what Penn State has been missing. Howard caught 12 passes for 344 yards and two touchdowns, and he added a 20-yard rushing score, before he was hurt at some point in the win over Buffalo.

The split since then is stark. With Howard, the Nittany Lions beat Marshall, Temple and Buffalo by a combined 127-22. Without him, they have lost all four Big Ten games and averaged 18.5 points. Chase Sowell has carried the passing game in Howard's absence, with 34 catches for 510 yards and three touchdowns, including an 11-catch, 151-yard day at Michigan. With Howard back, defenses could not tilt their coverage toward Sowell.

Campbell also said again that Rocco Becht will remain his quarterback. Becht's two interceptions and a lost fumble in the 21-18 loss at Michigan led to every Wolverines point. Elsewhere, the Reading Eagle reported that safety Jeremiah Cooper, who came back early from last year's torn ACL, was limited at Michigan to rest his legs. Penn State also ranks 113th nationally in net punting.

What it means for Purdue

The two teams meet at 3-4, but they have taken different routes there. Penn State comes off a bye after losses to Wisconsin, Northwestern, No. 19 USC and Michigan. Three of those four were decided by eight points or fewer, and the offense never got past 23 points in any of them. Purdue already has two conference wins, at Illinois and over Minnesota by 41-13, before last week's 38-26 home loss to Washington. The Boilermakers can score, with at least 36 points in five of seven games, but they have also given up 38 or more four times.

The market still trusts the home team. On this site's board, which tracks nine venues, Penn State is favored at -277 on the moneyline on Novig, with Purdue at +270 there. Novig lists the Nittany Lions at -9.5 at even money, while the best number anywhere for Penn State backers is BetMGM's -7.5 at -110. That two-point gap on the spread is wide for a conference game in the final week of October. The total is 54.5 on Novig, and Pinnacle is a half-point lower at 54 on the over. Sportsbook hold on the spread runs from 3.6% to 6.8% across the venues.

If Howard is cleared, the number may move. If he is not, Penn State will again need its offense to work without its best playmaker against a defense that has been easy to score on.