Big Ten Breakdown: Week One Preview

As we roll into Week Five of the college football season, the Big Ten has begun conference play. How is the Big Ten going to end up this season? I can’t tell you for sure, but I can break down the week one Big Ten matchups.

Minnesota at Ohio State

Ohio State is a football powerhouse and still is, even though they suffered a ego-killing loss to USC. USC is the top ranked team in the nation, and Ohio State just isn’t there. Don’t get me wrong—they are a very good team that should be ranked 10-20.

Their egos were stroked slightly after beating Troy last week, and they will be getting back on their feet to face Minnesota. Terrelle Pryor looked great with four TD passes to help the Buckeyes notch a 28-10 victory.

Minnesota enters the game at 4-0 and is fired up. Their recent victory over Florida Atlantic proved that their defense can make the big stops, and their offense can put points on the board.

The problem is with the caliber of teams that Minnesota has challenged coming into the Big Ten schedule. Ohio State is a different team than Northern Illinois, Bowling Green, and Montana State.

Minnesota’s defense is the key to their success. Can they hold up against a strong Buckeye offense?

My Pick: Ohio State by 14

Michigan State at Indiana

Indiana were handed their first loss on Saturday by a good Ball State team. The problem was a defense that allowed 250-plus yards in both rushing and passing. The coaches made quite a few player substitutions on defense to see who was worthy of playing.

On the offensive side of the ball, Kellen Lewis and Andrew Means showed they can hook up with a couple of long balls, and Lewis rushed 25 times and scored Indiana’s lone offensive touchdown. The mobility of Lewis is the best part of Indiana’s game—teams are struggling to cover him.

Michigan State is on a roll since losing its season opening game to Cal. Right now they have everything going their way: The ground game is excellent, the defense is stifling, and well, the passing game is good when Brian Hoyer can prove to be consistent.

If an opponent can figure out how to shut down Javon Ringer, the Spartans are going to struggle. They need to establish the run game to have a chance for a good passing game.

My Pick: MSU by 17

Northwestern at Iowa

Iowa appears to be having a bit of a quarterback controversy: Ricky Stanzi has attempted 48 passes to Jake Christensen's 56. So who is going to play more Saturday? Who knows? Whoever it is, I feel sorry for him, because the offensive line is allowing far too many sacks.

The good news is that it looks like Shonn Greene is going to be able to go the distance after rushing for 147 yards last week. The defense was extraordinary up until last week, allowing only eight total points in three games.

For the first time in my lifetime, Northwestern is off to a 4-0 start, albeit not a very difficult schedule that got them there. With Tyrell Sutton out with an injury, Omar Conteh has to pick up the slack, and last week showed us he probably can’t.

C.J. Bacher looked shaky with the picks that he threw in the second half of the game, apparently due to an injury. The good news is that the defense looks poised to stop anything.

With injuries, this pick is tough.

My Pick: Iowa by 3

Wisconsin at Michigan

Michigan is going through its rebuilding process, but aren’t the rebuilding years at Michigan the years that they just fall short of a conference championship? I’m not sure what to call their current progress. I guess I would call it starting over.

If there is a plus side to the season, Steven Threet has not thrown a single interception. Michigan is developing a running back with Sam McGuffie, and the pass offense is...well...they haven’t thrown an interception.

Wisconsin is being typical Wisconsin, holding ninth in the top 25. They are still overshadowed by Ohio State (ranked 14th, by the way). Every season I feel people talk about Ohio State and Michigan, because one of them is always really good. Therefore Wisconsin gets overlooked.

The offensive line has not allowed a single sack this season, and the rushing game is producing over 225 yards per game. The passing game is the only area that needs help, but does it matter with the way the ground game is working?

Michigan will come to play against Wisconsin, but can’t win.

My Pick: Wisconsin by 12

Illinois at Penn State

As long as Penn State doesn’t start like they did last week, they should excel. The 4-0 Nittany Lions are mostly untested, though, with wins over Coastal Carolina, Oregon State, Syracuse, and Temple.

On the plus side the scoring has been great: Penn State has not failed to score fewer than 45 points this season. Leading the Big Ten in both rushing and passing, the offense shouldn’t be a worry.

The defense has a few key injuries but has been doing a good job of containing the run. Illinois will probably have to air out the ball more than expected. We’ll have to see how the Penn State secondary does against a decent pass offense.

Illinois is ranked 22nd with a 2-1 record, but their two wins came against the likes of Eastern Illinois and Louisiana-Lafayette. Their loss was a close battle with Missouri.

The offense has been inconsistent at best. Do they want to run like at Eastern Illinois, pass like at Missouri, or do what they did against Louisiana-Lafayette?

They have good numbers in all aspects of the offense, but who knows which one will play against Penn State—and how well it will play. Look for Juice Williams and Arrelious Benn to make some big plays this weekend.

Brit Miller has been playing well on defense, but where is the rest of the team? They are coming around, and everyone is starting to groove, but they still need a bit of work. 

My Pick: Penn State by 20