The penultimate weekend of the Big Ten regular season included a few games that weren’t necessarily surprising by their respective outcomes, but rather what took place within the 60 minutes of play to lead to the final result. Then there were a handful of underdogs who won outright, including perhaps the surprise team of the conference this year. A couple match ups turned out to be one-sided affairs but based on the trajectory of the two victorious teams, it most likely shocked few onlookers those games turned out the way they did.
As conference play concludes, three teams are still alive for the Big Ten Championship game in Indianapolis. Ohio State clinched the East Division with the closer than expected win over Indiana, the details of which I’ll get to below. Wisconsin and Minnesota remain in the hunt out of the West, setting up perhaps the most high-stakes battle for Paul Bunyan’s Axe in the history of the longest-played rivalry in FBS when the Gophers and Badgers meet in Madison. And of course, the Buckeyes contest their annual hate fest with Michigan which might be the final game of the Brady Hoke era in Ann Arbor. Anyways, let’s take a look at what happened the previous weekend.
Big Ten Week 13 Analysis
Game of the Week:
Wisconsin 26, Iowa 24
After Melvin Gordon went wild and Wisconsin embarrassed Nebraska last Saturday, the question going into the Badgers trip to Kinnick Stadium to face Iowa was would it be more of the same. Gordon did have another 200 yard game capped off by an 88-yard run in the third quarter but when the Hawkeyes held Wisconsin to a field goal on that possession, it seemed to put a bit of pep in their step. Iowa would score on two consecutive drives led by quarterback Jake Rudock making some great passes which cut a 19-3 Badger lead to 19-17 after the Hawkeyes missed a second two-point conversion attempt. In the end, both teams would add a touchdown apiece and the Badgers would use their stellar running game to run the clock out on a closer than expected Wisconsin victory.
Wisconsin gets ready to host archrival Minnesota in the annual battle for Paul Bunyan’s Axe, but this year there’s a bit more than the rivalry trophy that’s on the line. The winner will have a chance to spoil Ohio State’s CFP chances in the Big Ten Championship. For the Badgers, they will be looking for their 11th consecutive win in the series, the longest winning streak for one team in the history of this great Big Ten rivalry that dates back to 1890.
Ohio State 42, Indiana 27
In a battle between the conference’s penthouse occupant and its cellar dweller, Ohio State was expected to roll but instead got a game from an Indiana team playing for pride and not much else after their bowl hopes were dashed the previous week at Rutgers. The Hoosiers even took a 20-14 third quarter lead on a 90-yard touchdown run from their all-conference back Tevin Coleman and forced an OSU punt on the next drive. Then Jalin Marshall showed up, taking a punt return into the end zone and adding three more touchdown receptions from J.T. Barrett as the Buckeyes got the job done late. Whether or not this “scare” affects their standing in the eyes of the CFP selection committee will be determined on Tuesday night.
Both teams close out with their annual rivalry showdowns, as Michigan comes to Columbus in what should be the Brady Hoke farewell game and Indiana takes on Purdue for the Old Oaken Bucket. Win or lose, the Buckeyes will travel to Indianapolis the following week for the conference championship game, while for the second straight year the Hoosiers and Boilermakers bowl aspirations are non-existent heading into their clash.
Minnesota 28, Nebraska 24
Slowly but surely, Minnesota is becoming the feel good story not just in the conference but in all of college football. Head coach Jerry Kill’s struggle with epilepsy has been well-documented as well as his team’s drive to rally around him. The Gophers had a blocked field goal returned for a touchdown in the second quarter which turned a likely 14-10 deficit into a 21-7 hole going into halftime. Epitomizing the never-say-die attitude of this team, though, they would come roaring back. Quarterback Mitch Leidner had a career day on the ground, rushing for 122 yards and two touchdowns including the go-ahead score that would keep Minnesota’s West Division title hopes alive. It was the first win for the Gophers in Lincoln since 1960.
The Cornhuskers dropped to 8-3 on the season and followed up a blowout at the hands of Wisconsin with a disappointing effort at home where they scored all of three points in the second half. There have been periods during head coach Bo Pelini’s tenure where his leadership of the program has come under fire and a two-game losing streak of this nature might rekindle the flames of criticism from the fan base in that respect. Their season finale takes place in Iowa City this coming Friday as Iowa has replaced Colorado as Nebraska’s traditional day-after-Thanksgiving opponent now that the Huskers are in the Big Ten. As discussed already, Minnesota faces Wisconsin for “The Axe” and a date with Ohio State.
Illinois 16, Penn State 14
I placed Tim Beckman on the hot seat in my recent article on the topic, and to be honest I probably wasn’t the only one. However, could the Illinois head coach not be as much of a “dead man walking” as some of us have made him out to be? All of a sudden, the Illini are 5-6 and one win away from bowl eligibility after two David Reisner field goals in the fourth quarter gave them a 16-14 comeback win over Penn State. At least from a win total perspective, the team has improved on a year-over-year basis in Beckman’s three seasons at the helm in Champaign.
Penn State may be bowl eligible, but things are anything but rosy in State College. Merely a year removed from a breakout freshman campaign that had many an NFL draft analyst anointing him as a surefire first round draft pick when he comes out, Christian Hackenberg has had a sophomore season to forget. The loss to Illinois pretty much summed up his inability to get things going in 2014 as he accounted for 93 yards passing. The Nittany Lions are averaging a conference worst 14.57 points per game in Big Ten play. Clearly, the honeymoon is over for head coach James Franklin, especially in the wake of the reduction in NCAA sanctions.
Maryland 23, Michigan 16
If Brady Hoke’s fate wasn’t sealed before the Terps came to Ann Arbor this weekend (and I find that hard to believe), the fact that Maryland left with a 23-16 victory may have tipped the scales in favor of the emperor known as interim athletic director Jim Hackett turning his thumb downwards. I honestly feel for the fans that had to sit through that first half in Michigan Stadium which finished 9-9 after three field goals from each team, none longer than 41 yards. The Wolverines would take a 16-9 lead into the fourth quarter then proceed throw the game away with crucial miscues that included a roughing the kicker penalty and a missed field goal, both of which would be followed by Maryland touchdowns.
With the loss, Hoke suffers the ignominious distinction of going 0-2 against conference newcomers Rutgers and Maryland the same year Michigan State won convincingly against both. High school prospects are either shunning UM or decommiting from them altogether, as evidenced by the recent news of four-star running back Mike Weber opening up his recruitment after formerly picking the Wolverines. I’m not even sure that an unthinkable Michigan upset of Ohio State in Columbus this coming Saturday will save him.
Michigan State 45, Rutgers 3
Ever since the 49-37 defeat to Ohio State that put to bed whatever CFP hopes the Spartans had, they’ve played like a vehemently angry team. Head coach Mark Dantonio has a “Bellichick-ian” feel to him, and his teams seem to put setbacks in the rear view mirror quite well much like that pro team from Boston. Big Ten debutantes Maryland and Rutgers have been the unfortunate victims of MSU at its most bellicose, getting outscored 82-18 between the two of them. After getting to six wins last week with a win over Indiana by scoring 45 points, the Scarlet Knights played like a team content with mediocrity in conceding 45 themselves in East Lansing.
Northwestern 38, Purdue 14
Northwestern was 3-6 and seemingly without bowl hope going into South Bend last week and it looked even more bleak when they trailed 40-29 late in the game. Somehow they forced overtime, upset the Irish and got a new lease on life which they utilized to full effect by taking Purdue to the woodshed in West Lafayette on Saturday. A first half leg injury to starting quarterback Trevor Siemian didn’t seem to slow the Wildcats down, with the running game more than making up for the slack. Running back Justin Jackson had 146 yards and two touchdowns in the rout which puts Northwestern a home victory over Illinois away from riding a three-game end-of-season winning streak into bowl eligibility.
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