No. 14 Michigan (2-1) at Wisconsin (3-0)
Wisconsin's seniors have never won a game against Michigan. In fact, the Badgers have not won against the Wolverines since 1994. But the Badgers have not played the Wolverines the last two years.
Last weekend, U-M dismantled Eastern Michigan, 55-0, but were upset the week before by Notre Dame. The Wolverines look vulnerable, mainly on the offensive side.
They might have to play without Michael Hart again, as the star running back suffered a hamstring injury against Notre Dame and did not play last week.
Tight end Tim Massaquoi (wrist) and right tackle Jake Long (ankle) are not expected to play this week. U-M head coach Lloyd Carr also said this week free safety Ryan Mundy will miss the rest of the season with a nerve injury.
The Badgers are hurting too, mainly on the defensive side. Tackle Justin Ostrowski and defensive end Jamal Cooper, two starters, will not play.
Mundy started all 12 games at free safety as a sophomore in 2004, and was expected to start again this year. He intercepted two passes and was fourth on the team with 51 tackles last season. Since Mundy started his career as a true freshman in 2003, he is eligible to redshirt this year and return as a junior in 2006.
Now the line is even less experienced than it was heading into the season.
In last season's meeting between the two schools, Chris Perry rushed for a then career-best 175 yards in 27 carries as the Wolverines won, 21-14.
Penn State (3-0) at Northwestern (2-1)
Northwestern seeks its eighth straight win at Ryan Field against the Nittany Lions, who are off to a surprisingly undefeated start after three victories at home.
Last weekend, the Wildcats lost to Arizona State, 52-21, as the two teams combined for 1,189 total yards of offense.
Penn State's strong spot is once again on defense, led by linebackers Tim Shaw and Paul Posluszny.
The line is allowing 276.3 yards per game and 47.3 rushing yards per game which is sixth-best in the nation.
Northwestern quarterback Brett Basanez leads an offense ranked 12th in the nation in total offense and 37th in scoring. Basanez has already thrown to 13 different players in just three games. Shaun Herbert leads with 21 catches and four touchdowns and running back Tyrell Sutton is averaging 138.7 rushing yards per game with six touchdowns - and he's only a freshman.
No. 11 Purdue (2-0) at Minnesota (3-0)
An undefeated record is on the line as the two schools meet for the first time since 2002, when the Gophers lost 28-15 at Purdue.
The No. 1 Minnesota rushing offense will go up against the No. 1 Purdue defense this weekend. The Gophers are the only team to post 1,000 rushing yards this season, while the Boilermakers are allowing an average of only 16 yards per game - also the best in the nation.
Last season, Purdue lost five games with a combined point total of just 14.
Minnesota's Laurence Maroney is 50 yards shy of becoming only the sixth running back in school history to rush for at least 3,000 in his career. The Gophers offensive line this season has only allowed one sack, which is tops in the conference along with U-M. Last season, the line allowed only nine sacks.
The game also is Minnesota head coach Glen Mason's 100th game.
Esther Gim and The Associated Press
