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First Posted: 9/18/2014
OK, so last week wasn’t exactly redemption for the Big Ten.
Neither Minnesota nor Illinois looked to have a prayer of beating Power 5 conference foes on the road.
Indiana added to the league’s loss total to the MAC by allowing 33 second-half points to Bowling Green, a game the Hoosiers actually played on the road.
Ohio State obliterated its weakest opponent… only to see that Virginia Tech team that won at The Shoe last week lose at home to ECU.
Iowa tried to send out two kickers on a field goal try.
Yeah.
So it was probably fitting that the first quarter of the first game between two Big Ten teams wound up scoreless. And that there were six turnovers and just 23 total points.
All of this so that somehow, after just three weeks, a dozen of the 14 teams in the league have at least one loss. Penn State and Nebraska are the only two unblemished. The Nittany Lions are about two plays away from being 1-2 and the Huskers were tied in the final minute against McNeese State.
But! This is actually a decent chance to improve on that miserable record against major opponents this week. Three shots at at the ACC, all of them winnable, and one each against the Pac-12 and SEC. Only Indiana headed into Missouri looks to be hopeless, and Nebraska can claim a win in primetime against a Miami team that just about never wins in these situations any more.
So there’s an outside chance next week’s preamble in this space won’t be abjectly miserable as we get ready for league play. Hooray?
| EASTERN MICHIGAN at No. 11 MICHIGAN STATE | ||
| EAGLES | GAME INFO | SPARTANS |
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Noon, Saturday Spartan Stadium East Lansing, Mich. |
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| 1-2, 0-0 MAC | MATCHUP | 1-1, 0-0 Big Ten |
| LINE: MSU by 45. Let’s check in on the Eagles first to see how… Oh. Yeah, that was a mistake. Some PSU fans may have looked at an EMU box score or two to see how former Lions starter Rob Bolden has been faring. It’s tough to see. Once the first true freshman to start a season at QB for Penn State in a full century, Bolden opened the season as the third-stringer for Eastern, though he may start this week. His only cameo so far was in a 65-0 annihilation at Florida. He went 2-for-5 for 4 yards and threw a pick-six. Hindsight, 20/20, yada yada… but you have to believe both Bolden and the Nittany Lions would have been much better off had they allowed him to transfer when he tried. This game? Best not to think about it. Sparty has had a week off to stew about that miserable second half at Autzen. This one will hurt. | ||
| BOWLING GREEN at No. 19 WISCONSIN | ||
| FALCONS | GAME INFO | BADGERS |
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Noon, Saturday Camp Randall Stadium Madison, Wis.
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| 2-1, 0-0 MAC | MATCHUP | 1-1, 0-0 Big Ten |
| LINE: UW by 27. Oh, we’ll get into Indiana later. But kudos to the Fightin’ Falcons, who scored 33 second-half points to claim a win over the Hoosiers last week. Now’s as good a time as any to mention that the MAC is 3-5 against the Big Ten this season and was basically one late Ball State stop against Iowa away from being .500. That about says it all, doesn’t it? Wisconsin is decidedly not Indiana. And given that the Hoosiers ran for 235 yards on BGSU, one has a pretty good idea what Melvin Gordon might do to the Falcons, especially after a week off. | ||
| IOWA at PITT | ||
| HAWKEYES | GAME INFO | PANTHERS |
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Noon, Saturday Heinz Field Pittsburgh, Pa.
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| 2-1, 0-0 Big Ten | MATCHUP | 3-0, 1-0 ACC |
| LINE: UP by 7. Iowa managed to sum up the Big Ten’s general dysfunction pretty well on one play in last week’s loss to rival Iowa State. Lining up for a tying field goal in the fourth quarter, the Hawkeyes initially had 12 men on the field before realizing the mistake and making the kick. OK, that’s pretty embarrassing with the game on the line, but not a crime against the sport. …Except that two of the 12 guys were kickers. That’s a new one. The coup de grace was the Cyclones actually missing their own game-winning field goal try at the gun. …Except that Kirk Ferentz had called a timeout at the last possible second. Re-kick. Good. Cy-Hawk ends up in Ames. Maybe Ferentz will be more comfortable Saturday in the city where he grew up to face the Panthers. Probably not. Despite a miserable first quarter that saw them spot an awful FIU team a 16-0 lead last week, the Panthers are off to a good start with a promising young core of skill players led by wideout Tyler Boyd. He should come up big here in a Pitt win. | ||
| WESTERN ILLINOIS at NORTHWESTERN | ||
| LEATHERNECKS | GAME INFO | WILDCATS |
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Noon, Saturday Ryan Field Evanston, Ill.
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| 2-1, 0-0 MVFC | MATCHUP | 0-2, 0-0 Big Ten |
| Most Big Ten teams run the Directional Michigan gauntlet when filling out the non-conference schedule. The Wildcats get to try the Directional Illinois one. Problem is, Northwestern lost the first leg of it against NIU for the program’s ninth loss in the last 10 games. And then an off week to follow. Pat Fitzgerald has responded by putting the Cats through their paces. High-intensity practices in the rain. Openly talking that the team is “an embarrassment to anyone who’s ever put on the purple and white.” Well, whatever motivational tactics they were trying before obviously weren’t working. Maybe this will. The Leathernecks are the team that served as a punching bag for Wisconsin after the Badgers blew that game against LSU. They should provide similar therapy for the Cats. | ||
| SOUTHERN ILLINOIS at PURDUE | ||
| SALUKIS | GAME INFO | BOILERMAKERS |
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Noon, Saturday Ross-Ade Stadium West Lafayette, Ind. |
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| 3-0, 0-0 MVFC | MATCHUP | 1-2, 0-0 Big Ten |
| Wasn’t kidding about the Directional Illinois gauntlet! The Big Ten will have played all four of ‘em after this week (Northwestern played Northern in Week 2 and Minnesota beat Eastern in the opener). Northern is the only one in the FBS ranks, but that distinction sorta goes out the window when the opponent is Purdue, which is fully capable of losing to anyone. But let’s not pile on the Boilers too much. Darrell Hazell’s crew was actually more competitive against Notre Dame than conference patriarch Michigan was a week earlier. Purdue nearly took a lead into halftime against the Irish before surrendering a late score and doing nothing much of note in the second half. After a brief quarterback controversy, Danny Etling seems to have solidified his job as the starter. Besides, even Purdue should be able to hold off an FCS team at home. Right? | ||
| MARYLAND at SYRACUSE | ||
| TERRAPINS | GAME INFO | ORANGE |
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12:30 p.m., Saturday Carrier Dome Syracuse, N.Y.
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| 2-1, 0-0 Big Ten | MATCHUP | 2-0, 0-0 ACC |
| LINE: SU by 1. Yes, Maryland will fit in with the Big Ten just fine. Last week’s excruciating last-second loss to West Virginia on a field goal added to the league’s dismal showing against fellow Big Five conference opponents. That being said, the Terps showed a spark by posting a big-time rally against the Mountaineers and very well could have one the game. And besides, at least Maryland is entertaining. Though they lost, the Terps turned in one of the most crowd-pleasing contests of the week, especially in what was a pretty dull early slate of games. And of course, there were the Red-White-And-Blue uniforms, complete with the lyrics to the Star-Spangled Banner on the helmets. You’d also be correct in saying they were one of the least radical styles they’ve worn in recent years. Syracuse and Maryland were “ACC rivals” for exactly one year, with the Orange sandblasting a worn-down Terps roster 20-3 last year. Maryland might just return the favor here. And oh, this game isn’t actually on regular TV. Likely have to go online to ESPN.com to see it. | ||
| RUTGERS at NAVY | ||
| SCARLET KNIGHTS | GAME INFO | MIDSHIPMEN |
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3:30 p.m., Saturday Memorial Stadium Annapolis, Md.
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| 2-1, 0-1 Big Ten | MATCHUP | 2-1 Independent |
| LINE: USNA by 6. It truly is a baptism into the ranks of the Big Ten to suffer a loss like the Knights did Saturday night, sharing a good gut-punch with brother-in-arms Maryland. Several outlets that cover Rutgers wrote this past week that the moment was ultimately too big for the program, and that’s hard to argue. The Knights invested so much emotion into that game, placed so much importance on it publicly and privately, that it was just impossible to keep up for four full quarters. Oh, and the quarterback threw five interceptions. That didn’t help. And yet, the Knights are the only member of the 14-team Big Ten to record a win over a Big Five opponent with their narrow victory against Washington State. Regardless, Navy is not at all the team you want to be facing coming off of a loss like that. Rutgers goes from facing a non-existent run game to the frustrating triple-option attack of the Middies (just ask Ohio State). That’s how you end up almost a touchdown underdog to a service academy. Navy is the pick. | ||
| UTAH at MICHIGAN | ||
| UTES | GAME INFO | WOLVERINES |
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3:30 p.m., Saturday Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, Mich.
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| 2-0, 0-0 Pac-12 | MATCHUP | 2-1, 0-0 Big Ten |
| LINE: UM by 4.5. Chances are, the Wolverines aren’t half as hopeless as a large section of their fanbase believes. An embarrassing shutout at Notre Dame was followed by a so-so win over Miami (Ohio, Not The Real Thing) that was mainly troubling because the Redhawks look to be particularly lousy this year. Michigan didn’t have the services of top threat Devin Funchess along with a few other contributors, which didn’t help matters. So that brings us to the Runnin’ Utes, who could really, really get the Big House into a frothy brew of self-loathing with an early score or two, bringing on the boos for Brady Hoke. Utah has put up 115 points (!) in its first two games, albeit against the simply awful defenses of Idaho State and Fresno State. So while Maize and Blue hearts may be longing for a Harbaugh-led renaissance, it says here that it’s too early to write off the Wolverines, who should pull this one out and remain a threat in a crumbling conference. | ||
| SAN JOSE STATE at MINNESOTA | ||
| SPARTANS | GAME INFO | GOLDEN GOPHERS |
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4 p.m., Saturday TCF Bank Stadium Minneapolis, Minn. |
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| 1-1, 0-0 MWC | MATCHUP | 2-1, 0-0 Big Ten |
| LINE: UMN by 8.5. There just never seems to be much to say about the Gophers. Though maybe in a month of bad headlines for the Big Ten, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Since booting knucklehead Tim Brewster, Minnesota has been a fairly normal program that usually wins when it should, usually loses when it should and winds up winning seven or eight games to reach a bowl game. Of course, that formula basically got Glen Mason fired for some reason. Last week was a pretty typical example as a trip to Texas ended in a very one-sided loss to TCU in which workhorse back David Cobb was smothered and ailing QB Mitch Leidner was picked off three times. Bringing in SJSU for a playdate will be another win that won’t tell us much as a setup for next week’s showdown at the Big House. Can’t imagine there’s all that much interest in some of these random matchups such as: | ||
| TEXAS STATE at ILLINOIS | ||
| BOBCATS | GAME INFO | FIGHTING ILLINI |
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4 p.m., Saturday Memorial Stadium Champaign, Ill.
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| 1-1, 0-0 Sun Belt | MATCHUP | 2-1, 0-0 Big Ten |
| LINE: UIUC by 14. Yeah, I got nothing. | ||
| UMASS at PENN STATE | ||
| MINUTEMEN | GAME INFO | NITTANY LIONS |
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4 p.m., Saturday Beaver Stadium State College, Pa. |
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| 0-3, 0-0 MAC | MATCHUP | 3-0, 1-0 Big Ten |
| LINE: PSU by 26.5. Full breakdown plus prediction coming Friday. So there are storylines other than the returns of Alex Kenney and Austin Whipple to Happy Valley? (If you are indeed wondering, Kenney has one catch for 14 yards and Whipple is not on the two-deep for his father, the new head coach). This is actually a team that’s struggling to run the ball even more than the Nittany Lions, ranking 119th in the nation to Penn State’s motley 115th. Spiffy. For as bad as the Minutemen have been since making the jump to the FBS ranks, they’ve actually shown some real fight these past two weeks, falling just a field goal short against struggling Big Five schools Colorado and Vanderbilt. Yes, that Vanderbilt, which needed a fourth-quarter blocked punt TD to help erase a two-score deficit. UMass has given up 654 yards rushing in those three losses, so another Penn State faceplant would be a pretty terrible sign. Penn State fell about 10,000 fans short for James Franklin’s “#107kStrong campaign” in the home opener. Drawing anywhere near 100,000 for this one would be pretty impressive. | ||
| INDIANA at No. 18 MISSOURI | ||
| HOOSIERS | GAME INFO | TIGERS |
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4 p.m., Saturday Faurot Field Columbia, Mo.
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| 1-1, 0-0 Big Ten | MATCHUP | 3-0, 0-0 SEC |
| LINE: UM by 13.5. Give ‘em credit. The Hoosiers keep finding ways to create ridiculous-looking box scores, win or lose. Getting beat by Bowling Green is the type of thing that has happened to this program in the past. But losing to a MAC team while letting them run 113 total plays on you? That’s damn impressive. Rarified air. Indiana, by comparison ran 78. As much as we write about Indiana’s breakneck tempo, the downside, of course, is that it completely drains the energy out of your own defense as much as the opponent. Even when you’re scoring as much as IU was here, it’s happening so fast that there’s no time to rest. That’s how the Bowling Green State University Falcons put together three fourth-quarter scoring drives totaling 32 plays and 253 yards. Mizzou, meanwhile, looked very strong in the second half to pull away from UCF. Hard to imagine Indiana faring any better. | ||
| MIAMI at No. 24 NEBRASKA | ||
| HURRICANES | GAME INFO | CORNHUSKERS |
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8 p.m., Saturday Memorial Stadium Lincoln, Neb.
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| 2-1, 0-1 ACC | MATCHUP | 3-0, 0-0 Big Ten |
| LINE: UNL by 7.5. We’re now 13 years removed from that brutal national title game when the Hurricanes hammered Heisman winner Eric Crouch and Nebraska. Seems like even longer when you remember that the Canes’ loss to Jim Tressel, Maurice Clarett and Craig Krenzel came even a year after that. It’s been an extremely long road back to that level for Miami, and there’s a sizable number of people in and around Coral Gables that’s wondering if Al Golden is the man to lead them back to the top. It didn’t help that Golden was rather blatantly keeping the door open for an offer from Penn State to return home, which didn’t exactly earn him a lot of goodwill among Miami fans longing for the heyday of The U. Nebraska actually has a lot of those same issues with not being able to live up to incredibly high expectations built from the program’s great history. So what about this year? Not sure that another former Penn State captain, Miami defensive coordinator Mark D’Onofrio, has the scheme to slow down Ameer Abdullah and his 500 total yards from scrimmage this month. Time for the Huskers to get a bit of revenge. | ||
