Six games put 12 teams in action as Penn State and Wisconsin get their opportunity to nurse some wounds. The three east heavyweights all have some intriguing games as OSU and Michigan hit the road and the Spartans try to regroup after a Chuck Norris roundhouse kick to the gut sunk their playoff hopes. If they win out, they will hold tiebreakers over Michigan and Ohio State. A one-loss Big Ten champ made the CFP a year ago so don’t drop the curtain on MSU just yet. Not when you have the best quarterback in the league with Connor Cook flinging the ball around. All times are central.
Game of the Week:
Illinois vs Ohio State
Did you know this is the only Big Ten game between teams with winning records? It may not seem like much of a bump in the road for OSU but the Illini are 5-4 and have some fight to them. Outside disastrous road trips to North Carolina and Penn State, they’ve played pretty well. JT Barrett was in a groove before his suspension, let’s see if the time away messes with anything for him and if it does, how long his leash is. Ah, the soap opera that is the Buckeye quarterback situation.
- Saturday, 11am, ABC
Sleeper:
The battle for Floyd of Rosedale as these two old rivals square off in Kinnick, under the lights in prime time. Iowa is #5 in the CFP poll. The math says if they win out, they will be dancing. Of course priority number one has to be winning the west. Iowa has the tie breaker over their nearest competitor, Wisconsin but the Hawks still have a road trip to pesky Nebraska to close the season so you know Iowa doesn’t want to falter in their final two home games. Minnesota has played much better after the shocking retirement of Jerry Kill. Saturday will be Tracy Claeys’ first game as the head man, having the interim tag removed earlier this week. I like that move. It provides continuity but since UM does not have an athletic director the timeline of hiring an AD, doing a coaching search, interviewing candidates and hiring a coach would have tanked the recruiting class. Who knows how good Claeys will be but the alternative probably would have made 2016 a lost season. At least now they have a fighting chance. Considering how well Claeys has had this team play against Michigan and Ohio State, an upset isn’t out of question.
- Saturday, 7pm, BTN
Don’t Forget:
In Michigan’s stumble against MSU and near upset at Minnesota the common feature in both games was passing yardage. Indiana may not play a lick of defense but they sure know how to move the ball. IU has been competitive with OSU, MSU and Iowa this year. Expect more of the same when they host the Wolverines. As for Michigan, the MSU loss gives them renewed hope at winning the east. If Michigan wins out and Ohio State gives the Spartans a second league loss, UM will be in Indianapolis. Wouldn’t that be something?!
- Saturday, 2:30pm, ABC / ESPN 2
Snoozer:
Why is Purdue Pete about to bash the brains in of a lovable Willie the Wildcat?! Northwestern should be extremely confident after a gritty win against Penn State. Purdue meanwhile just got bushwhacked by Illinois. NU has a good chance to win ten games with only Wisconsin seemingly standing in their way. Purdue has a good chance to lose ten games with only…well, no…I don’t see them winning again.
- Saturday, 11am, BTN…Or sleep in…or do something productive. You know Thanksgiving is the 26th. Why not use this time to plan your feast, buy the non-perishables, polish the good silverware and create an iron clad seating arrangement that puts the creepy drunk uncle nowhere near you. It’s called time management.
Upset Watch:
Right End – Indiana has been agonizingly close the last few years. A good start last season turned sour when Sudfeld got hurt. This year they have had one-possession games in the fourth quarter against Iowa, Ohio State and Michigan State. Is this the week they finally get a ranked opponent? Is this the week they get to 5 wins and make a bowl one step closer? Big one in Bloomington.
Wrong End – Iowa losing to Minnesota wouldn’t just spoil their 9-0 start but make it two in a row for the Gopher’s. After last year’s humiliating 55-14 final, I would expect Iowa to play with a lot more heart and fire regardless of the ranking.
Elsewhere (Alphabetical):
Maryland at Michigan State – Sure the Nebraska game stings but it is still all there for MSU. Winning out nets them the Big Ten title and a fair shot at making the CFP. After all, in that scenario they would have wins over Michigan, Ohio State, a solidly ranked BTN West team, Penn State with 8 or so wins, Oregon with 8 or so wins and a Western Michigan team contending for the MAC right now. It all starts with them regrouping and taking down Maryland at home.
- Saturday, 11am, ESPN2
Nebraska at Rutgers – If I had told you these teams were coming in with a combined 7-12 mark in the summer, I think most people would assume Rutgers had fallen apart and was somehow winless and Nebraska would be 7-3. Instead both teams have six losses on the year. Pretty simple, loser doesn’t make a bowl. For Rutgers, odds are Kyle Flood gets canned without a bowl. He has been too much of a distraction off the field with not enough results on it to justify the pain. For Mike Riley, I think he is safe as long as the Nebraska AD who hired him is still getting paychecks.
- Saturday, 2:30pm, BTN
Random Musing:
I’m trying to think of a bigger upset this year than if Illinois stuns Ohio State and I can’t think of one. Nebraska over Michigan State was big, but we knew NU had athletes, they were just adjusting to a new coach and having some bad defensive performances. Georgia Tech over Florida State loses some weight because of FSU lost to Clemson. Ole Miss over Alabama doesn’t seem right since Ole Miss is for sure going to a bowl game and beat the Tide last year. Texas over Oklahoma doesn’t count either because that is a yearly rivalry game. The more I rack my brain thinking of something bigger, the more I am convinced that an Illini upset on Saturday would be the biggest humdinger of the year. Will it happen? Doubtful, but we certainly would have a lot to talk about at the watercolor on Monday if it does!
Big Ten and Counting 