#22 Wisconsin 51 Indiana 3

Another year, another beating handed out by Wisconsin to Indiana. The Hoosiers are thankful Wisconsin will be going to another division next year because Indiana just plain stinks when they face them. This game was a squash from the opening kickoff. Indiana was shutdown in all facets of the game, while Wisconsin could pretty much run whatever plays they wanted to throughout. The Hoosiers only had 224 total yards and turned the ball over twice. Wisconsin racked up a whopping 554 yards and six touchdowns on the ground! Look at the rushing numbers:

-James White: 20 carries for 205 yards and a touchdown
-Melvin Gordon: 13 carries for 146 yards and a touchdown
-Corey Clement: 11 carries for 108 yards and two touchdowns
-Jared Abbrederis: 3 carries for 86 yards and two touchdowns

Yes, even Abbrederis joined in on the running parade. Wisconsin continues to be severely underrated by everybody. The screw job loss to Arizona State is killing them in the polls and it’s a real shame. The Badgers are one of the most balanced teams in the country and they don’t get the recognition they deserve. Whatever bowl game they get selected for won’t be good enough for them. And the team facing Wisconsin won’t have any idea what they’re in for when they take the field.

Penn State 45 Purdue 21

Kudos to Purdue for making this game much closer than people expected. The Boilermakers were only trailing by a touchdown at the beginning of the third quarter. In the end two factors cost Purdue the game: turnovers and the Penn State running game. Purdue turned the ball over twice, including two costly fumbles in the second half. Penn State racked up 289 yards rushing and five touchdowns on the ground. The star of the rushing attack was running back Zach Zwinak, who has been great for the Nittany Lions ever since he fixed his fumbling problems. Zwinak rushed for 149 yards and three touchdowns against the Boilermakers. Purdue quarterback Danny Etling deserves a shout out too for playing a good game and keeping his team alive for the win. He completed 21 of 33 passes for 223 yards and had two total touchdowns. It had to be an encouraging game for head coach Darrell Hazell and the Boilermaker fans because this was the best game Purdue has played in conference all season. I think Hazell has this team going in the right direction and they have two winnable games to close out the season to build upon for next season.

Michigan 27 Northwestern 19 (3 OT)

Field goals and punts! That sums up this game. If Jim Tressel was watching this game, he would’ve got aroused by all of the “action” in regulation because this was like his dream game. The rest of us did get some real excitement in regulation. It came at the very end when Michigan was out of timeouts and was down three. That gave us the following play:

I never knew kicking a field goal could be so dramatic. The Michigan special teams looked prepared for this too. That kick sent the game into overtime, where both teams were forced to score and mercifully end the game. Both teams traded points until the third overtime, where Michigan finally prevailed. The Wolverines got the ball first in triple overtime and drove down to the goal line where quarterback Devin Gardner ran in for the score. Gardner ran it in again to get the two-point conversion. The Wildcats offense stalled when they got the ball and just didn’t have enough to pull off the win. It was a heartbreaking sixth straight loss for Northwestern, who just can’t catch a break. Meanwhile the win for Michigan was a big one after losing in the two previous weeks. And the Wolverines rushed for positive yardage! So what exactly did Michigan do different? They benched senior starter Fitzgerald Toussaint and played two freshmen running backs. And it was a noticeable difference. Running backs Derrick Green and De’Veon Smith combined for 120 yards on 27 carries. So expect to see them get the bulk of the carries for the rest of the season. The real test will be this weekend when they travel to Iowa.

#16 Michigan State 41 Nebraska 28

Nebraska stood toe-to-toe with Michigan State and only trailed by six at the end of three-quarters. But when you turn the ball over five times it’s going to catch up with you at some point. And that’s what ultimately cost Nebraska. If the Huskers had managed to hang onto the ball better they may have won this game because that was the most the Spartans’ defense has been pushed around this season. How much should the five turnovers be attributed to Michigan State’s brutally good defense and how much to Nebraska players? A little of both, but mostly to the former. The Spartans gave up 28 points, 210 passing yards and 182 rushing yards. But they still physically imposed their will on the Huskers. Nebraska running back Ameer Abdullah rushed for 143 yards, making him the first player to run for 100 yards against Michigan State this season. Michigan State has a pretty good running back emerging for them too. Spartans running back Jeremy Langford rushed for 151 yards and three touchdowns, proving to be the best weapon for the offense. Michigan State is now in firm control of the Legend’s division. They’re expected to win out, finishing 11-1 (I still can’t believe they lost to Notre Dame, but Michigan didn’t) on the season and getting a shot at the Ohio State Buckeyes in the B1G Championship. That game should be a top 10 match-up and I can’t wait to watch it. The Spartans defense against the Ohio State offense will be entertaining to see.

We’re getting to the point of the season where each game can have a big impact on a team’s season. A win or loss could mean the difference between becoming bowl eligible, staying in a conference race, keeping your BCS hopes alive or even a coach’s job security. The level of intrigue and excitement certainly goes up a notch when the season hits November. With that being said let’s get to this week’s B1G games and see what’s on the line for each of them.

Penn State @ Minnesota

For Minnesota, an unprecedented eight win is up for grabs here and an outside shot of remaining in the Legend’s division conversation. For Penn State, until the bowl ban ends it’s all about playing for pride and respect. This should be a close and interesting game. The Gophers are firing right now on both sides of the field. On offense, quarterback Philip Nelson and running back David Cobb have been getting better each game. The defense continues to play together as a solid unit and seem to have a bend, but don’t break philosophy. With Penn State this season, we’ve seen two different teams. There’s the good team that beat Michigan and then there’s the bad team that got beaten by Ohio State and Indiana. It all really depends on the play of quarterback Christian Hackenberg. If he can play well, then Penn State has a shot to win this game. If he doesn’t, I expect an easy victory for the Gophers.

Iowa @ Purdue

Am I finally going to say this is the game that Purdue shocks everybody and wins? No way. Purdue got shellacked by the Buckeyes last week at home, so they don’t exactly have momentum on their side. I will say one good thing about Purdue: They have a solid punting game. So they got that going for them. Iowa is looking to get their sixth win of the season and going back to their first bowl game in two seasons after missing out last season. The Hawkeyes should have no problem running the ball all over the Boilermakers. This should be a nice tune up game for Iowa before they face Michigan in two weeks.

Illinois @ Indiana

After winning three of its first four games, Illinois has lost four out of the last five. They’ve also lost 18 straight conference games. If they want to reach six wins and bowl eligibility, they have to win three of their last four games. Piece of cake, right? Well with Ohio State on deck next week and it likely being a loss, an Illini loss here pretty much eliminates them from reaching a bowl. Quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase and the offense will need to step it up and put up a lot of points if they hope to beat Indiana. But this is also a must win for Indiana if they hope to reach a bowl too. The Hoosiers offense has been able to score a ton of points all season, but the defense has cost them in several games. Last weekend was a perfect example. Minnesota’s offense got out to a nice lead, but the Hoosiers offense made a comeback and led by three late. The Indiana defense then let Minnesota’s offense drive right down the field and score the game-winning touchdown. This one’s a complete toss-up, but I think Indiana’s offense will win them this game.

BYU @ #24 Wisconsin

A non-conference game for a B1G team in November? Yeah this is a pretty rare thing. Kudos to Wisconsin for scheduling a solid opponent so late in the season. BYU is quietly 6-2 on the season, with their only losses being Virginia (?) and Utah. Their most impressive wins have coming against Texas and Georgia Tech. So BYU isn’t a world beater, but is a pretty solid team. The star for the Cougars is unquestionably their quarterback Taysom Hill. Hill has thrown for 2,019 yards and 12 touchdowns, while also rushing for 841 yards and eight touchdowns. If you wanna beat BYU, you have to stop Hill from having a great game. The Badgers’ defense is certainly capable of slowing down Hill. With the exception being Braxton Miller, they’ve been able to keep other quarterbacks in check. Is Hill at the same level as Miller? Not quite, but he’s not too far off. The Badgers should be able to run on the Cougars because they’ve found success in their running game when facing just about anyone (except Ohio State). This will be a close game, but the magic of Camp Randall Stadium should be enough to help Wisconsin win this game.

Nebraska @ Michigan

I’ll just spell out for you: this game is pretty big for both teams. The winner remains alive in the Legend’s division race and helps take some heat off their respective coach. The loser is eliminate from the decision race, puts more heat on their coach and chalk up another loss in a lost season. No pressure. Michigan just picked itself up out of the field at Spartan Stadium after Michigan State beat them into it. The Spartans obliterated Michigan in all facets of the game. Wolverine fans are in panic mode, with some even calling for head coach Brady Hoke to get the ax. So the sky is basically falling in Ann Arbor right now. I don’t know how Michigan is prepared for this game against Nebraska. Your guess is as good as mine. You can’t exactly fix a bad defense in one week. So Michigan needs to hope Devin Gardner and the offense can score a lot of points. Nebraska is coming off an emotional home victory against Northwestern, which they won with a last second Hail Mary. Star quarterback Taylor Martinez is still recovering from injuries and will not start against Michigan. Backup Tommy Armstrong will be making his fifth career start and doesn’t exactly have momentum. He was pulled against Northwestern after he threw three interceptions and nearly cost them the game. He has yet to face a hostile road environment like this yet, so nerves could play a factor. Nebraska is a hard team to gauge because you never know how the defense will play. I see a lot of points in this game, with scoring going into the forties, maybe even the fifties. This may shock you, but I think the Wolverines win this one. Hoke has yet to lose at home, so it’s hard to go against Michigan here with that kind of record. If Michigan does indeed win, just enjoy it while you can Wolverine fans.

1.) Ohio State (9-0)- Beat Purdue 56-0. They took the lead early in the game on a Doran Grant Pick 6 and never looked back. Purdue was every bit as bad as we thought they would be. Ohio State is peaking and becoming a dominant team at the right time.

2.) Michigan State (8-1)- Destroyed TTUN 29-6. Once again the Spartan defense proved they are a dominant force to be reckoned with. They collected 8 sacks on Devin Gardner. Held the Wolverine Offense to -48 yards rushing… yes that was a NEGATIVE sign. The offense is blah at best but that doesnt matter the defense is this teams identity.

3.) Wisconsin (6-2)- Beat Iowa 28-9. Wisconsin defense was on their A game this week even without star LB Chris Borland. The offense was just effective enough to win the game.

4.) Minnesota (7-2)- Beat Indiana 42-39. Minnesota is playing great football. The team has really turned around and is on their way to a bowl game this year.

5.) Nebraska (6-2)- Beat Northwestern 27-24. In a game that will go down in history for Nebraska fans the Hail Mary that saved the day probably should have never been needed. Nebraska is still woefully underperforming.

6.) Penn State (5-3)- Beat Illinois 24-17. It took OT for the Lions to get the victory but they needed it badly after the beat down they suffered to OSU last game out.

7.) Iowa (5-4)- Lost to Wisconsin 28-9. The defense played extremely well in fact they held B1G leading rusher Melvin Gordon to 68 yards his lowest output of the season. The offense was inept as usual.

8.) Northwestern (4-5)- Lost to Nebraska 27-24. They played well enough to win a big game on the road but fell to the Cornhuskers on a last second Hail Mary play.

9.) Michigan (7-2)- Lost to Michigan State 29-6. Thoroughly dominated in this game. The offense couldn’t do anything against MSU. The defense was set up to fail all game long. The coaching for this team is questionable at best. Time to stop living off their past success and fix their current failures.

10.) Indiana (3-5)- Lost to Minnesota 42-39. Made a furious comeback to take the lead after being down 30+ points but came up short at the end. The offense is great. The defense is awful.

11.) Illinois (3-5)- Lost in OT to Penn State 24-17. You can see real improvement in this team. It hasnt translated to many wins yet but you can sense that they are coming.

12.) Purdue (1-7)- Lost to Ohio State 56-0. The Boilermakers were dominated in every aspect of the game. They are going to need to get back to basics if they hope to improve at all next year.

There was something on the line for pretty much every team in the B1G. Ohio State wanted to keep its undefeated season going and stay in contention for a possible BCS National Championship game appearance. Wisconsin needed to win to remain in contention for a possible at-large BCS bowl game shot. And several teams were looking to stay in contention for the Legend’s division title and a chance to play Ohio State for the B1G Championship in Indianapolis. Who stayed in contention and who fell out of contention? Let’s take a look.

Penn State 24 Illinois 17 (OT)

This was a tight game throughout and it basically came down to who made one less mistake. And that team was Penn State. Penn State drove into the end zone with ease in overtime, capping off the drive with a 15 yard touchdown pass from Christian Hackenberg to Kyle Carter. Illinois quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase then threw an interception on Illinois’ first play of overtime and sealed the loss for the Fighting Illini. Illinois has now lost 18 straight conference games and the heat is certainly on head coach Tim Beckman and his coaching staff to whip the program into shape. It was a nice bounce back win for Penn State after their huge loss to Ohio State and will be something to build on as they head into their upcoming game against Minnesota.

Minnesota 42 Indiana 39

Speaking of Minnesota, they continue to surprise everyone. Many expected Indiana (not me) to roll over Minnesota with their offense, but that wasn’t the case. The Gopher defense held Indiana in check until the end of the third and beginning of the fourth quarters when the Hoosiers went on a 28-0 run. Trailing by four late in the game, Gophers quarterback Philip Nelson threw a 50 yard touchdown pass to receiver Maxx Williams and it proved to be the game winner for Minnesota. Nelson played the best game of his collegiate career, completing 16 of 23 passes for 298 yards and four touchdowns with zero turnovers. Running back David Cobb had another great game too, rushing for 188 yards and a touchdown. It was a tough loss for Indiana and their bowl chances. With three wins, they will need to win three of their remaining four games to be bowl eligible. While they should be able to defeat Illinois and Purdue, they will have to pull off a big upset against Wisconsin or Ohio State to hit six wins. Minnesota now has seven wins and a fighting chance at winning the Legend’s division. Even if they don’t win the division, this is a pretty great season for the Minnesota football program.

#24 Wisconsin 28 Iowa 9

This game was close through three and a half quarters and featured what both teams do best: a power running game and smash mouth defense. In the end though, Iowa’s defense just couldn’t stop the Wisconsin running game. Badgers running back James White, not Melvin Gordon, led the way for Wisconsin. White carried the ball 19 times for 132 yards and two touchdowns, which won the game for Wisconsin. Give a lot of credit to the Wisconsin defense too, which held Iowa to only 110 yards rushing and zero total touchdowns. Star running back Mark Weisman only rushed nine times for 15 yards. This forced the Hawkeyes to rely heavily on their passing game, something that really isn’t a strong suit for them. Quarterback Jake Rudock completed 12 of 24 passes for only 109 yards and an interception. Backup C.J. Beathard was even worse (4/16 passing, 70 yards, one interception). There is good news for you Iowa fans out there. Your next opponent is Purdue, which everyone in the B1G has taken turns at beating down. Wisconsin will have a rare November non-conference game against BYU, which should be an interesting match-up.

Nebraska 27 Northwestern 24

One play not only changed the outcome of this game, but really the season’s for each of these teams. Facing a three-point deficit with a few seconds left on the clock and the ball at midfield, Nebraska needed a miracle Hail Mary touchdown pass to win. And they got it. With Taylor Martinez injured, backup Tommy Armstrong Jr. started the game, but was pulled after throwing three interceptions. This forced the Huskers to turn to third-string quarterback and fifth year senior Ron Kellogg III. Back to the final play, Kellogg scrambled around the pocket and heaved a long pass towards the end zone. After bouncing off a few Northwestern defenders, the ball landed in the unlikely hands of true freshman wide receiver Jordan Westerkamp. I watched this happen live and I couldn’t believe my eyes. Nebraska turned the ball over four times and they still found a way to win. It was a huge win for Nebraska and keeps them alive in the Legend’s division race. This gives them a much-needed momentum boost heading into a pivotal two weeks that features games against Michigan and Michigan State. On the flip side, the misery continues for Northwestern. This was a must-win game for the Wildcats to reach bowl eligibility. It appears their game against Michigan will determine if they go to a bowl, as I see them losing to Michigan State and beating Illinois.

#22 Michigan State 29 #21 Michigan 6

23 points. That was the margin of victory for Michigan State. But if you watched this game like I did, you know it felt more like 50. The Michigan State defense seemed to play at even higher level in this game. They basically bludgeoned the Michigan offense to pieces. Let me list some stats regarding the destruction the Spartans’ defense did to the Wolverines on Saturday. Turn away if you’re a Michigan fan. The most impressive stat: Michigan State held Michigan to -48 yards rushing. Seriously. Michigan only had 168 total yards of offense. The Spartans’ defense racked up seven sacks and treated Devin Gardner like their own personal rag doll. I could go on and on about the defensive performance of Michigan State. Their offense wasn’t too shabby either. Spartans quarterback Connor Cook threw for 252 yards and a touchdown, while also rushing for a touchdown. Running back Jeremy Langford ran for 120 yards and a touchdown. As for Michigan, they were an absolute mess all around. Wolverine fans are livid, confused and disappointed about the whole season. Just go to any Michigan blog and fans are freaking out. Many are questioning the coaching staff’s game planning and the passion of head coach Brady Hoke. All I know is they have problems. Michigan State is the clear favorite to win the Legend’s division and many are pondering a match-up between them and Ohio State in December. I certainly am. We’ll see if the Spartans can keep it up.

Looking at the B1G schedule for week 10, its pretty obvious what game stands out and is the must see thriller for B1G fans. I’m talking of course about the Ohio State-Purdue game! Everyone has been circling this game on their calendar for months. But in all seriousness the game that actually stands out is Michigan @ Michigan State. The winner will undoubtedly have an advantage in the Legend’s division race. The loser will face a much tougher road if they hope to reach Indianapolis. Before we go any further let’s talk about the other match ups around the conference.

Illinois @ Penn State

Talk about the battle of beaten down teams. These two teams are coming off absolute nightmare games, in which each were dominated. Penn State was handed its worst loss in over a century by Ohio State and Illinois was steamrolled by the Michigan State defense. Both are ready to put last weekend behind them and couldn’t get to Saturday soon enough. The game being at Happy Valley is pretty big for Penn State because they’ve been beaten soundly at both of their road games this season. Quarterback Christian Hackenberg is coming off his worst game of his career. He threw for only 112 yards, two interceptions and was pulled out of the game in the second half. A normally solid Penn State rushing attack only got 120 yards on the ground and zero touchdowns. Illinois had very similar numbers offensively last weekend. Quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase only threw for 103 yards and an interception. The Fighting Illini only mustered 25 rushing yards. To me this game comes down to who can respond best from a beat down and can actually apply what they learned from it to make themselves better. I think Penn State responds best and thrives off their home field advantage, cruising to an easy victory behind star receiver Allen Robinson.

Minnesota @ Indiana

Indiana is a high-scoring team with a bad defense. Minnesota is a team that rides behind its solid running game and consistently steady defense. I see Minnesota having no problem running the ball and putting up points in this game. The big question is can their defense stop the high-powered offense of Indiana? Indiana is averaging 342.7 passing yards per game, which is the 10th best average in the FBS. Their average of 42.4 points per game is good enough for eighth overall in the FBS. The Hoosiers even scored 28 points against a tough Michigan State defense. At the same time Minnesota’s defense has demonstrated they can slow down high-scoring offenses too, as Nebraska couldn’t get going at all last weekend against the Gophers. This game is pretty even and I could see any team coming out on top on this one. You can’t go wrong picking the Hoosiers or the Gophers.

Northwestern @ Nebraska

These are two teams that could definitely use a win at the moment. Northwestern is currently mired in a four-game losing streak after opening the season 4-0. Nebraska is coming off a surprising road loss to Minnesota and once again has Husker fans questioning the leadership of Pelini and whether or not he should be replaced. This is something I’ve been discussing in length with some Nebraska and B1G fans. My opinion seems to constantly be shifting on Pelini and I’m really not sure what to make of the situation. Pelini has consistently delivered good seasons at Nebraska, but I think some Husker fans are ready for the program to take the next step and return to the national conversation. Right now it’s hard to gauge both teams and what to expect from them. I think this will be a tight game, but I’ll go with the team that has home-field advantage and has a little more to play for in Nebraska. I expect Martinez and Nebraska to play with some passion and deliver a win to the home crowd.

#24 Wisconsin @ Iowa

Wisconsin has been rolling ever since losing to Ohio State, but this could be trap game for the Badgers in Iowa City. The Hawkeyes can be a tricky team to face when playing them in Kinnick Stadium. And of course you can’t forget about the pink visitor’s locker room that is supposed to play psychological games with opposing players’ heads (I rarely hear this mentioned on broadcasts now). Both of these teams play a similar style of offense. They like to pound it on the ground and only pass when necessary. Iowa is led by the one-two punch of Mark Weisman and Damon Bullock, while Wisconsin has their own dynamic duo in Melvin Gordon and James White. The Badgers duo has the edge in terms of talent, but they will face one of the best red zone defenses in football. While Iowa has the home-field advantage, Wisconsin has had two weeks to prepare for this game. I think Iowa puts up a good fight, but in the end Wisconsin has the talent edge on offense and defense.

#21 Michigan @ #22 Michigan State

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How about this? Two ranked B1G teams facing off against each other! Not only is this a heated rivalry game, but a game that will no doubt affect the Legend’s division race in the B1G. Michigan State currently leads the division and is the favorite to face Ohio State in the B1G Championship game. The Spartans have one of the best defenses in the country and have suffocated opposing teams all season long. The big question mark all season has been the offense, which prompted me to go on this rant. Well now it appears the offense is coming around too. Michigan State has scored 40 or more points in two of their last three games. Michigan got a much-needed bye week after winning a shootout against Indiana two weeks ago. Michigan, unlike it’s rival Michigan State, has had a pretty good offense all season, but have struggled mightily on defense. The return of star linebacker Jake Ryan will help once he gets back to 100% again, but it’s going to take more than one player for Michigan to fix their defensive woes. I expect the Michigan coaching staff will try some new schemes in this game to try to shake things up on defense. While on paper this game appears to be in favor of Michigan State, you can never predict what will happen in rivalry games. Most of the time this game goes down to the final minutes or seconds even, so I won’t be surprised if this is the case again. It should be a fun game to watch (especially if Michigan loses).