Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Tuesday Morning Quarterback
It was another tough weekend for the Big Ten. The MAC bit us again (NIU over Purdue). Notre Dame finally beat MSU at home, despite being on its heels all the way to the end. Northwestern coughed up a big lead in a loss to Syracuse - who is now 1-2 in the Big Ten! Minnesota got bullied by Cal. Are we thankful to take to league play this week? I know I am.

Team of the Week: Iowa. The Hawkeyes were the only Big Ten team to beat someone of note and did so with relative ease.

Player of the Week: Mike Kafka had a monster game for Northwestern, but a late pick set the Orangemen up for the game winner and ruined an otherwise outstanding performance (35-42 for 390 yards).

Around the Big Ten
Wisconsin - Wow. Win over Wofford. Yawn. Next up: Michigan State

Purdue - The Huskies nearly got UW in the opener and this time finished the deal. Two wins for the MAC over the Big Ten. Ugh. Next up: Notre Dame

Penn State - Things go from cupcake to serious in a hurry with Iowa coming to town. We can finally see how "real" Penn State will be this year. Next up: Iowa

Ohio State - OSU took out some frustration on a decent Toledo team. Pryor still wasn't exactly an ace, but he's got something to prove and that bodes well for the Bucknuts. Next Up: Illinois

Northwestern - The Wildcats were the first victim in three tries for Syracuse. The offense is up to snuff. The defense? Not so much. Next up: Minnesota

Minnesota - The Golden Gophers were clearly out-classed by the speed and talent of Cal. No worries though, most everyone in the nation would experience the same. Chance for redemption this weekend. Next up: at Northwestern

Michigan State - Another shot to the heart. State was this close to extending the win streak in Notre Dame Stadium but instead is 1-2 and desperate for a win. Next up: at Wisconsin

Michigan - EMU played Michigan closer than the score might indicate and the Wolverines lost their starting center in the process. Indiana won't pose much of a problem, giving the boys in blue a chance to further build their confidence. Next up: Indiana

Iowa - Iowa keeps getting better and better. Now it ratchets up a notch, a big notch. Penn State wants revenge. Next up: at Penn State

Indiana - Holy cow, IU is 3-0. Haven't beaten much, but are unbeaten nonetheless. This week we see if IU is for real or not. Next up: at Michigan

Illinois - Illini needed the rest with all the injuries mounting. This week starts a brutal stretch against the three "States" of the Big Ten. Next up: at Ohio State

Get Gamm Winner:
Mayo170 went an impressive 9-1 and gets the honors this week.

Michigan State at Wisconsin
Indiana at Michigan
Minnesota at Northwestern
Illinois at Ohio State
Notre Dame at Purdue
Iowa at Penn State



3 comments:

Phats said...

WISCONSIN 31 michigan state 21

MICHIGAN 44 indiana 0

MINNESOTA 28 northwestern 21

OHIO STATE 24 illinois 14

PURDUE 42 notre dame 41(can't pick against Purdue, and won't! Figure we have to outscore them sure hope HOPE finds the offense)

PENN STATE 28 iowa 21

Dan Meyer said...

Week 4 Picks (3-3 may not be a terrible result this weekend)

MICHIGAN STATE 20 at Wisconsin 17--Camp Randall may not be as deadly to Big 10/11 opponents as in recent years.

Indiana 7 at MICHIGAN 27--Not necessarily convinced that the Wolverines are in the top three of the Big Ten--but they don't have to be to trounce IU.

MINNESOTA 27 at Northwestern 24--Easy one to get wrong; let's just attribute this pick to the Paulus effect (last week's loss to Syracuse).

Illinois 14 at OHIO STATE 28--Tressel allows no repeat of two years ago.

Notre Dame 21 at PURDUE 24 (over-the-top biased pick)--Boilers motivated by embarrassment vs. NIU and last year's second half debacle vs. the Irish.

Iowa 14 at PENN STATE 21--Hawkeyes put up a fight, but JoePa avoids rerun of last year.

Buckeye Nation said...

Michigan State 27 at Wisconsin 24
Indiana 17 at Michigan 24
Minnesota 31 at Northwestern 21
Illinois 7 at Ohio State 31
Notre Dame 34 at Purdue 31
Iowa 23 at Penn State 21