Around The Big Ten: Week Ten

Audio/Story posted November 4, 2016 in CommRadio, Sports by Sports Staff

PODCAST:

George Stockburger, Dylan Huberman, Will Desautelle and Eric Ohlson tell you everything you need to know about this week's matchups around the Big Ten.

The upcoming slate of November games in the Big Ten is creating considerable hype, both with Big Ten fans and college football followers across the country. In the Big Ten West, No. 10 Nebraska still holds a one-game lead over No. 8 Wisconsin, but its biggest challenge thus far comes this weekend with the Cornhuskers traveling to Columbus to take on Ohio State this Saturday night. In the East, Michigan maintains their one-game lead over both Ohio State and Penn State, and should be fine this week hosting Maryland. These are the games you will want to check out on Saturday, along with some predictions for each Big Ten game this weekend.

No. 8 Wisconsin (6-2, 3-2 B1G) at Northwestern (4-4, 3-2 B1G), 12 p.m. ET, ABC
The Badgers have done their best to navigate through an excruciating five (arguably six) game slate that saw them play ranked teams four of the last five weeks. With that being said, they still face a tough test going to Evanston, facing off against an upstart Northwestern team that gave Ohio State quite the scare last week. With a win and Nebraska loss, Wisconsin would take control of the Big Ten West, making this a crucial game for the Badgers. If the Wildcats are able to pull off the upset, they would tie Nebraska for first. This game is definitely the best “early” game on the Big Ten slate, and will have a significant impact on the Big Ten West race.

Maryland (5-3, 2-3 B1G) at No. 3 Michigan (8-0, 5-0 B1G), 3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
In a classic “Master vs. the Apprentice” matchup, Maryland head coach D.J. Durkin travels back to Ann Arbor to face off against Jim Harbaugh, who Durkin has been an assistant for at both Stanford as well as last season as his defensive coordinator at Michigan. The Terrapins will try to come back from a tough 42-36 loss at Indiana last week. An upset seems pretty unlikely for this contest, but if against all odds, Maryland can travel to the Big House and pull off this upset, it will shake up the entire Big Ten East race and the College Football Playoff.

Iowa (5-3, 3-2 B1G) at No. 12 Penn State (6-2, 4-1 B1G), 7:30 p.m. ET, BTN
Both teams come into this game from very different perspectives. Penn State did not lose a game in October and comes into this matchup riding a four game winning streak, while Iowa tries to work its way back into the Big Ten West after a 2-2 October that saw the team lose close games to division foes Northwestern and Wisconsin. The Hawkeyes do not nearly look like the team they were a year ago when they played in the Big Ten Championship game. It should be a raucous environment in Happy Valley on Saturday night in a game neither team can afford to lose at this point in the season.

No. 10 Nebraska (7-1, 4-1 B1G) at No. 6 Ohio State (7-1, 4-1 B1G), 8 p.m., ABC
Coming off a tough loss a week ago, the No. 10 Cornhuskers face a must-win game if they want to keep their Big Ten West lead. They come off a tough overtime loss last week to Wisconsin and will find themselves either tied or passed by the winner of the Wisconsin-Northwestern game in the standings with a loss. On the other side, Urban Meyer and the Buckeyes cannot afford a loss at home if they hope to catch Michigan and have a shot at the College Football Playoff. Regardless, one team will likely find their College Football Playoff chances vanished with a loss on Saturday night in Columbus.

Predictions:
Michigan State over Illinois
Wisconsin over Northwestern
Indiana over Rutgers
Michigan over Maryland
Minnesota over Purdue
Penn State over Iowa
Ohio State over Nebraska

 

Zach Kaplan is a freshman majoring in broadcast journalism. To reach him via email, find him at zachkaplan5@gmail.com.