The 11th-seeded SMU Mustangs take on the sixth-seeded Penn State Nittany Lions in the first round of the College Football Playoff on Saturday. The winner of the game will then face the third-seeded Boise State Broncos in the quarterfinals at the Fiesta Bowl on Dec. 31. The Mustangs (11-2), who won the Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season title at 8-0, are 5-0 on the road this season. The Nittany Lions (11-2), who tied with Indiana for second place in the Big Ten Conference at 8-1, are 6-1 on their home field. SMU will be without at least six players and Penn State five due to injury or the transfer portal. Among those out for the Mustangs is junior tight end R.J. Maryland (knee).

Kickoff from Beaver Stadium at University Park, Pa., is set for noon ET. The Nittany Lions are 8.5-point favorites in the latest SMU vs. Penn State odds, while the over/under for total points scored is 54. Penn State is a -334 money-line favorite (risk $334 to win $100), while SMU is a +261 underdog.

Before making any SMU vs. Penn State picks or predictions of your own, you NEED to see which side SportsLine NFL expert Micah Roberts is on. 

Micah Roberts has worked in the Las Vegas sportsbook industry for 20-plus years, including a 13-year run as Station Casinos' book director. Most importantly, Roberts has a strong read on the pulse of the Nittany Lions. In fact, he is an AMAZING 19-6 (+1237) on his last 25 picks in games involving Penn State! Anybody following is WAY UP!

Now, Roberts has locked in another confident against-the-spread pick for Penn State vs. SMU.

We can tell you he's leaning Under the point total, but he also knows a crucial X-factor makes one side of the spread a MUST-BACK! You ABSOLUTELY need to see what it is before locking in any picks of your own.

So who wins Penn State vs. SMU in the College Football Playoff first round, and what x-factor makes one side of the spread a MUST-BACK? ... Join SportsLine right now to see which side of the SMU vs. Penn State spread hits HARD, all from the expert who is an AMAZING 19-6 on picks involving the Nittany Lions!