On a personal note, I am still struggling with the MSU loss to Iowa. Hat's off to Iowa - the Hawkeyes find a way to win. But I'd like to sucker punch a referee today. Hard.
Now that I have that off my chest... it was more of the same this past weekend. Iowa, Penn State and Ohio State remain at the top. MSU is squarely in the next group, wondering what it has to do to get a win. Two games this year lost on the last play. Four by 15 points. Minnesota is in trouble. Indiana likely saw its bowl hopes swirl down the toilet with an epic collapse. Northwestern's season got new life. Purdue has put two good games together. Illinois is bad - real bad. OSU plays both Penn State and Iowa coming up, hang on tight, it is going to be a wild finish...
Team of the Week: Iowa. The Hawkeyes have sat here a lot this season. They are as plain as vanilla ice cream. But they get it done. In a classic Big Ten battle, the Hawkeyes pulled a victory from the jaws of defeat, moved up to fourth in the latest BCS poll and are squarely in the driver's seat.
Player of the Week: Daryll Clark of Penn State led his team to its first win in Ann Arbor since 1996 (seemed to be a common theme for the road winners this past weekend) with a rock solid performance. 16-27, 230 yards and 4 TD passes.
Around the Big Ten
Illinois - Ron Zook got a vote of confidence from his boss. That usually is code for, start lookin' for a new gig. Illinois won't win again. The Illini have sent it in. Amazing for a team that is two years removed from a Rose Bowl berth with some real talent in the lineup. Next up: Michigan
Indiana - I feel for the Hoosiers. IU jumped to a 28-3 lead early, got bottled up the rest of the way and lost in the end. What a shame. That loss likely means home for the holidays. How will the cream and crimson respond? We'll find out in a hurry, as the Hoosiers travel to Iowa City for a battle with the nation's number four team. Next Up: at Iowa
Iowa - Unreal. This team has the magic. Nothing pretty, but solid all the way around. Iowa has to be careful not to get complacent because Indiana has come close twice on the road and would love to rain on Iowa's parade. That said, Iowa is in control with just one road game left - a tough trip to C-bus. Next up: Indiana
Michigan - We're seeing the youth exposed in Ann Arbor. Penn State manhandled the Wolverines on Saturday and that leaves the maize and blue 1-3 in the conference with a few tough games remaining. Will Rich Rod get the boys to buckle down and win a few more to get that all important bowl bid? Stay tuned. Next up: at Illinois
Michigan State - The Spartans are two plays from a 6-2 (4-1) record and a share of first place in the Big Ten. State did everything right against Iowa, except win. Dantonio has been great at keeping the Spartans on an even keel, win or lose, and he'll need to dial up a big performance on the road this week to jump start a critical stretch of winnable games. Next up: at Minnesota
Minnesota - The Golden Gophers have scored seven points in the last two games, saw stud wide receiver Eric Decker go down with an injury and have to play another white hot defense this weekend. At 4-4 and with games against MSU and Iowa remaining (plus Illinois and South Dakota State), the Gophers are in must-win now mode. Next up: Michigan State
Northwestern - Northwestern pulled off what has been pulled off on the 'cats in the past. A highly improbably come back win. Down 28-3, NU pecked away at the lead and then held strong at the end to beat Indiana. That was huge, as the Wildcats still have Penn State, Iowa and Wisconsin on tap (plus Illinois). Next up: Penn State
Ohio State - Ohio State was very sluggish in the first half against Minnesota, but blew the doors off the game with a big play to start the second half. It gets easy for a week, and then OSU finishes with a trip to Happy Valley, a huge home date with Iowa and a roadie to Michigan. Next Up: New Mexico State
Penn State - The Nittany Lions are starting to fire on all cylinders with an eye on a November 7 matchup with the Buckeyes. Penn State needs help in the conference race, but has BCS on the brain. First up, the Nits have to be careful not to overlook the Wildcats... Next up: at Northwestern
Purdue - Don't look now but Purdue has a two game win streak. However, the Boilers have to travel to Madison to take on a rested and hungry UW squad. Getting at least three wins in the last four games is a tall order, but with new found confidence, maybe Purdue is up to the task. Next up: at Wisconsin
Wisconsin - The Badgers have lost two straight. The week off came at a great time. Now the Badgers are focused on winning out, an outside shot at a piece of the Big Ten title and a New Year's Day bowl berth. It starts with a hot Purdue team coming to town. Next up: Purdue
Get Gamm Winner:
Phats, Andrew and Buckeye Nation all went 5-0 this week - thanks to Iowa's comeback win. Phats was closest on the tiebreaker so he becomes our first back-to-back picker on the season...
Indiana at Iowa
Now that I have that off my chest... it was more of the same this past weekend. Iowa, Penn State and Ohio State remain at the top. MSU is squarely in the next group, wondering what it has to do to get a win. Two games this year lost on the last play. Four by 15 points. Minnesota is in trouble. Indiana likely saw its bowl hopes swirl down the toilet with an epic collapse. Northwestern's season got new life. Purdue has put two good games together. Illinois is bad - real bad. OSU plays both Penn State and Iowa coming up, hang on tight, it is going to be a wild finish...
Team of the Week: Iowa. The Hawkeyes have sat here a lot this season. They are as plain as vanilla ice cream. But they get it done. In a classic Big Ten battle, the Hawkeyes pulled a victory from the jaws of defeat, moved up to fourth in the latest BCS poll and are squarely in the driver's seat.
Player of the Week: Daryll Clark of Penn State led his team to its first win in Ann Arbor since 1996 (seemed to be a common theme for the road winners this past weekend) with a rock solid performance. 16-27, 230 yards and 4 TD passes.
Around the Big Ten
Illinois - Ron Zook got a vote of confidence from his boss. That usually is code for, start lookin' for a new gig. Illinois won't win again. The Illini have sent it in. Amazing for a team that is two years removed from a Rose Bowl berth with some real talent in the lineup. Next up: Michigan
Indiana - I feel for the Hoosiers. IU jumped to a 28-3 lead early, got bottled up the rest of the way and lost in the end. What a shame. That loss likely means home for the holidays. How will the cream and crimson respond? We'll find out in a hurry, as the Hoosiers travel to Iowa City for a battle with the nation's number four team. Next Up: at Iowa
Iowa - Unreal. This team has the magic. Nothing pretty, but solid all the way around. Iowa has to be careful not to get complacent because Indiana has come close twice on the road and would love to rain on Iowa's parade. That said, Iowa is in control with just one road game left - a tough trip to C-bus. Next up: Indiana
Michigan - We're seeing the youth exposed in Ann Arbor. Penn State manhandled the Wolverines on Saturday and that leaves the maize and blue 1-3 in the conference with a few tough games remaining. Will Rich Rod get the boys to buckle down and win a few more to get that all important bowl bid? Stay tuned. Next up: at Illinois
Michigan State - The Spartans are two plays from a 6-2 (4-1) record and a share of first place in the Big Ten. State did everything right against Iowa, except win. Dantonio has been great at keeping the Spartans on an even keel, win or lose, and he'll need to dial up a big performance on the road this week to jump start a critical stretch of winnable games. Next up: at Minnesota
Minnesota - The Golden Gophers have scored seven points in the last two games, saw stud wide receiver Eric Decker go down with an injury and have to play another white hot defense this weekend. At 4-4 and with games against MSU and Iowa remaining (plus Illinois and South Dakota State), the Gophers are in must-win now mode. Next up: Michigan State
Northwestern - Northwestern pulled off what has been pulled off on the 'cats in the past. A highly improbably come back win. Down 28-3, NU pecked away at the lead and then held strong at the end to beat Indiana. That was huge, as the Wildcats still have Penn State, Iowa and Wisconsin on tap (plus Illinois). Next up: Penn State
Ohio State - Ohio State was very sluggish in the first half against Minnesota, but blew the doors off the game with a big play to start the second half. It gets easy for a week, and then OSU finishes with a trip to Happy Valley, a huge home date with Iowa and a roadie to Michigan. Next Up: New Mexico State
Penn State - The Nittany Lions are starting to fire on all cylinders with an eye on a November 7 matchup with the Buckeyes. Penn State needs help in the conference race, but has BCS on the brain. First up, the Nits have to be careful not to overlook the Wildcats... Next up: at Northwestern
Purdue - Don't look now but Purdue has a two game win streak. However, the Boilers have to travel to Madison to take on a rested and hungry UW squad. Getting at least three wins in the last four games is a tall order, but with new found confidence, maybe Purdue is up to the task. Next up: at Wisconsin
Wisconsin - The Badgers have lost two straight. The week off came at a great time. Now the Badgers are focused on winning out, an outside shot at a piece of the Big Ten title and a New Year's Day bowl berth. It starts with a hot Purdue team coming to town. Next up: Purdue
Get Gamm Winner:
Phats, Andrew and Buckeye Nation all went 5-0 this week - thanks to Iowa's comeback win. Phats was closest on the tiebreaker so he becomes our first back-to-back picker on the season...
Indiana at Iowa
Purdue at Wisconsin
New Mexico State at Ohio State
Michigan at Illinois
Penn State at Northwestern (Tiebreaker)
Michigan State at Minnesota
New Mexico State at Ohio State
Michigan at Illinois
Penn State at Northwestern (Tiebreaker)
Michigan State at Minnesota
