No. 4 Ohio State at No. 5 Michigan
After this week's BCS standings came out, with Ohio State No. 2, the 100th game between Michigan and Ohio State takes on a whole new light.
Both teams are playing for bragging rights, the Big Ten title and a BCS bowl game. The difference now is that Ohio State (10-1 overall, 6-1 Big Ten) is playing for a spot in the national championship game, where they likely would face Oklahoma.
A win for U-M (9-2, 6-1) would send it to the Rose Bowl, with a number of teams as possible opponents. The win would give U-M its 23rd 10-win season.
After beating Purdue 16-13 in overtime last week, the Buckeyes still seem to have quite a bit of luck left. It was Ohio State's second overtime win of the season. They beat N.C. State, 44-38, back on Sept. 13.
U-M looked like national title contenders early in the season and then looked like they were going to finish in the middle of the pack in the Big Ten. After an unbelievable fourth quarter at Minnesota, the Wolverines have been untouchable, with their closest scare over the last four games coming on a Hail Mary with no time on the clock at MSU. The Wolverines intercepted that pass and have now won five in a row, including the close calls at Minnesota and MSU.
The Wolverines have been great at home, scoring no less than 31 points in every game and giving up an average of only 7.3 points per game. The Ohio State offense has struggled against good defenses throughout the season, but the question could be: Can the U-M offense score against a very good Ohio State defense?
"They had a great defense a year ago, but they may be quicker in the secondary this year," U-M head coach Lloyd Carr said. "They play hard and well together, and I think that's why they are as good as they are."
Ohio State has won the last two meetings, beating U-M in Ann Arbor two years ago 26-20 and winning 14-9 last year on their way to the 2002 national championship. U-M leads the overall series 56-37-6.
J. Ryan Mulcrone
No. 16 Purdue at Indiana
Had Purdue place-kicker Ben Jones taken a step to the right last weekend when attempting a 37-yard field goal, this weekend might have been very different for the Boilermakers.
Instead, Jones' overtime field goal went left, his Boilermakers lost 16-13 to No. 4 Ohio State and Purdue (8-3, 5-2) doesn't need to worry about a conference championship. Instead, they have a date with Indiana (2-9, 1-6) to make sure they end the season on a positive note.
With a win, Purdue will clinch a tie for second place with the loser of Saturday's Ohio State vs. Michigan game and likely head to a New Year's Day bowl game. Because the Boilermakers lost to both the Buckeyes and Wolverines this season, Purdue likely will find itself in the Outback Bowl in Tampa, Fla.
Saturday in Bloomington will be the 114th meeting between the schools, which are playing for the "Old Oaken Bucket," the icon of Purdue-Indiana football rivalry.
Rivalry has faded, though, as Purdue has beaten Indiana in six of the last seven games. The last time the Boilermakers played in Bloomington, Ind., however, the Hoosiers came out on top, 13-7.
But Saturday's game is not a formality. Purdue will be looking to seal their season and a bowl berth - their seventh in as many seasons - and Indiana head coach Gerry Dinardo is in need of an impressive win for some job security.
Last week, Indiana lost to equally troubled Penn State, 52-7. Indiana's leading rusher, freshman BenJarvus Green-Ellis, accounted for 203 yards on 42 carries en route to the fourth-best rushing average in the Big Ten.
Purdue quarterback Kyle Orton and head coach Joe Tiller's spread offense should have a relative field day. The Hoosiers are last in the conference in scoring defense (allowing over 33 points per game) and total defense (more than 432 yards surrendered per game).
The Boilermakers, on the other hand, allow a paltry 86.5 yards per game to opponents on the ground and Orton throws for 221 yards per game on average, third best in the Big Ten. Purdue's senior defensive end Shaun Phillips leads the conference in sacks per game (1.14).
Patrick Walters
No. 17 Iowa at Wisconsin
Wisconsin's offense has been surging while Iowa's players are just trying to avoid the hospital.
No. 17 Iowa and Wisconsin face off this weekend in a battle of Big Ten number fives, sharing the spot with MSU, in a game of awkward circumstances.
For starters, Saturday's game holds serious bowl implications, with the Hawkeyes, Badgers and Spartans looking to the top bowl available - the Outback Bowl in Tampa, Fla.
Last week, the Badgers knocked off a top 25 opponent in the Spartans. This week, defeating another nationally recognized team could be their ticket to a respectable post-season appearance.
Badgers wide receiver Lee Evans was fantastic last week, catching a career-high 10 passes for 258 yards while tying a Big Ten record with five touchdowns en route to Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week. The man playing pitch-and-catch with Evans, quarterback Jim Sorgi, completed 16-of-24 passes for 380 yards. And Dwayne Smith guided the ground game, who ran for a career-high 207 yards with three touchdowns.
It seems the Badgers' offense is riding on all cylinders, but the Hawkeyes' defense is one of the toughest in conference.
Unfortunately, the Hawkeyes have been stacked against adversity this week. The Hawkeyes have been racked by the flu. Offensive lineman Robert Gallery and defensive lineman Matt Neubauer took ill before a 40-22 defeat of Minnesota last week. Gallery fought through the game while Neubauer was sent home. Sunday, defensive back Bob Sanders, the leader of the Hawkeyes' defense, entered the hospital and was diagnosed with the flu. In total, the coaching staff has tallied about 20 players fallen to illness.
Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz has called this a season of adversity, hoping the huge win against Minnesota under a cloud of illness will serve as an omen in Madison, Wisc., on Saturday.
The scene is set at Camp Randall Stadium. One team will leave in better bowl position than the other, while Iowa hopes to defeat the flu and Wisconsin looks to avoid it.
Paul Day
Northwestern at Illinois
A win by Northwestern in this game would give them the Sweet Sioux Tomahawk trophy, a .500 record and a chance at a bowl bid.
Northwestern has everything to play for in this game. A Wildcats win, coupled with a U-M win, could give the Big Ten two BCS teams and allow Northwestern to grab the Motor City Bowl bid. If two Big Ten teams don't go to the BCS, then Northwestern could be left sitting at the phone waiting for an at-large bid to another bowl.
One of the reasons for their turnaround has been a much improved defense, which has helped them stay in games.
"We got a lot of kids back on defense this season," Northwestern head coach Randy Walker said. "Last year, we had a lot of young kids who didn't have enough lead in the pencil."
Walker likes the attitude from this year's defense as much as anything he's seen on or off the field. The attitude has set the tone for them.
Northwestern (5-6 overall, 3-4 Big Ten) has been a better road team (3-2) than home team (2-4), so the Wildcats should have no problems with the short trip from Evanston,Ill. to Champaign, Ill., on Saturday.
"We're trying to bounce back from a tough game against Michigan," Walker said. "We've typically responded well to adversity throughout the year."
On the other side of the field, Illinois (1-10, 0-7) has nothing to play for except pride and in-state bragging rights. The Fighting Illini haven't shown much fight this season, losing nine straight games for first time since losing 18 in a row between 1996 and 1998.
Illinois head coach Ron Turner still feels his team has a lot to play for on Saturday despite his team's dismal record.
"There is a lot to play for, obviously pride No. 1, and the Sweet Sioux Tomahawk trophy which is something very important to us. We've had it here for two years," Turner said. "Also, we are going to play for the seniors, and hopefully it's an opportunity for them to go out with a win."
Nothing would be sweeter for the Illini though, than winning the Sweet Sioux Tomahawk for the third straight season and ending the nine-game losing streak. Illinois still hasn't won a Division I-A game this year, beating only I-AA Illinois State in their second game of the season.
J. Ryan Mulcrone
