Week 1 is in the books for Penn State after a 79-7 blowout victory over Idaho last Saturday in Beaver Stadium. There were some intriguing questions entering the game against the Vandals: How would the offensive line gel after some key departures? How would quarterback Sean Clifford look in his debut?

Those questions, according to the stat line, were answered with Clifford throwing for 280 yards and two scores in just two-and-a-half quarters of work, and the offensive line paving the way for 331 rushing yards at 7.4 yards per carry and seven rushing touchdowns. Penn State (1-0) certainly filled up the stat sheet, but it was obvious that Idaho was no match for the Nittany Lions first, second and even third team players. So, the end result – putting up 79 points in Week 1 – was a positive, and says something about the depth on this football team.

But the reality is some of Penn State’s lingering questions won’t be answered for a few more weeks.

Penn State’s opponent this week, Buffalo, will almost certainly put up a better fight than the Vandals, but I don’t think it will be as much of a test for the Nittany Lions as some believe. People will look at the Bulls’ 2018 season, where they finished 10-3, winning the MAC East, and think they’ll be coming into Happy Valley with some talent returning from that squad. But graduation and the transfer portal have not been kind to Buffalo.

MAC Offensive Player of the Year, quarterback Tyree Jackson is gone, along with his top receiving target Anthony Johnson and the Bulls’ top defensive player in Khalil Hodge. If those losses weren’t enough, Second Team All-MAC receiver K.J. Osborn transferred to Miami (FL), First Team All-MAC tight end Tyler Mabry transferred to Maryland, slot receiver and the Bulls best returner, Charlie Jones, transferred to Iowa, and running back Emmanuel Reed, who led the team in rushing in 2017, transferred to Maine. So, Buffalo is coming into Beaver Stadium tonight (7:30 p.m. ET, FOX) with a lot of new faces in important places.

The Bulls defeated Pennsylvania’s-own Robert Morris last week, 38-10, depending mostly on the running game to help them defeat the Colonials. The rushing attack is a strength for Buffalo, as it returns Jaret Patterson (978 yards, 14 TDs) and Kevin Marks (845 yards). Patterson rushed for 90 yards and a score last week, while Marks rushed for 75 yards. As a team, the Bulls rushed for 285 yards at 6.1 yards per carry.

Penn State gave up just four yards rushing last week.

“They’re a 12- and 11-personnel team for the most part. They’re going to run inside zone, they’re going to run the stretch play, the counter-Y,” said Penn State head coach James Franklin. “Last week they did not throw the ball much, only 10 times, but you look at what they did last year, obviously with a veteran quarterback, they did some really good things in the passing game.

“So, we’re not really sure – did they do that because it was the first game and they didn’t feel like they needed to, did they not do that because they had a first-year redshirt freshman starting quarterback and they just did not want to put too much on his plate? That’s what you’re not sure of, and these early season games can be challenging like that.”

As good as Penn State’s offense was last week (79 points, 673 total yards) what impressed me the most was its speed and depth on the defensive side of the ball. The “wild dogs” defensive front performed as advertised, albeit against inferior competition. But seven sacks is still a pretty good debut no matter who you’re playing. Also, just the sheer physicality and size of the players on the Nittany Lions “D” is impressive as well. You can just see that this unit has the potential to be special.

As Coach Franklin highlighted, Buffalo threw the ball just 10 times last week, and I don’t think you’re going to see it throw the ball much more this week with how formidable the Penn State pass rush looks. I think you’re going to see the Bulls try and just stick with their strength and run the football, which will put them in a position where they could potentially be worn down early against a bigger and stronger Nittany Lions front seven.

My pick is

: Penn State 53, Buffalo 10.