Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins faces the biggest game of his young college career (two weeks after his last “biggest game of his career”) when the fourth-ranked Buckeyes visit No. 9 Penn State on Saturday (7:30 p.m. ET) in Happy Valley.

The sophomore has quite a few weapons. Three Buckeyes receivers appear in the upper reaches of the Big Ten leaderboards: Parris Campbell is tied for first in touchdown catches (five) and second in receiving yards (299); Terry McLaurin is first in yards per catch (24.2) and K.J. Hill is third in receptions (21).

So what kind of matchup will Haskins face in the Nittany Lions?

Penn State is fifth in the B1G in defending the pass (allowing 173.3 yards a game) but has shown some vulnerabilities.

Appalachian State gave Penn State a good scare in the season opener, partly because the Nittany Lions secondary allowed Malik Williams (four catches, 66 yards, two TDs) to run free here:

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Another time, Williams just made a terrific catch despite being well covered — Haskins has shown he is very capable of making these kinds of throws:

But Nittany Lions cornerback Amani Oruwariye made a strong play for the game-ending interception in overtime, saving Penn State from what would have been an embarrassing home loss to start the season:

Oruwariye pops up a lot on Penn State’s defensive highlight reel through four games this season. The senior cornerback made another terrific interception Sept. 8 at Pittsburgh, using his frame to fend off the intended receiver then keeping his concentration to catch the ball with the receiver all over him. The 6-foot-1, 204-pound Oruwariye was a preseason second-team All-Big Ten selection and it’s easy to see why here:

Penn State allowed very little against overmatched Kent State (221 total yards in a 63-10 romp) but this time Oruwariye tried to jam the receiver and it did not work. This might be instructive for Ohio State’s most physical receivers, particularly a guy we have not even mentioned yet: 6-2, 215-pound Austin Mack:

https://youtu.be/k2sd-HZbO5I?t=33

Oruwariye was at the center of yet another play against Illinois last week, this time in a positive way. The Nittany Lions were in an unexpectedly close game when No. 21 got good positioning and deflected the ball into the air, leading to an interception by linebacker Jan Johnson:

Oruwariye leads the Nittany Lions in interceptions (two) and pass breakups (six). Cornerback Tariq Castro-Fields has four PBUs; starting safeties Nick Scott and Garrett Taylor have one apiece. PSU’s linebackers will be a factor, including Cam Brown and Koa Farmer, because Ohio State likes to dial up a lot of short passes on slants and screens.

Penn State only has four interceptions but Haskins will still want to be careful with the ball because if the Nittany Lions force a turnover, they have the speed to make their opponents pay immediately.

The stats say Penn State’s defense can be had, but the athleticism says the Nittany Lions might just have the horses to keep up with Haskins and the rest of Ohio State’s offense.