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Week
12
Big Ten Fearless Predictions, Part
2 |
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Tickets for These Games
How'd we do so far? 66-15 straight
up, 39-32-2
ATS
Big Ten Game of
the Week
Michigan
(11-0) at
Ohio State
(11-0) 3:30 PM EST ABC Saturday
November 18th
-
The Michigan vs. Ohio State Preview,
Breakdown and Prediction
Iowa
(6-5) at
Minnesota
(5-6) 12 PM EST ESPN+ Saturday
November 18th
Why to Watch: Minnesota, left for
dead weeks ago, can pull off a
semi-shocker and finish the year with
three straight wins to become bowl
eligible. To do that, it needs to beat
Iowa for the first time since 2000 and
has to hope the Hawkeyes keep playing as
scattered and dull as they have over the
last few weeks. After beating Illinois
in its Big Ten opener, Iowa has lost
five of six Big Ten games hurt by
turnovers, dropped passes, and
inconsistency on both sides of the ball.
As bad as things have been, a win would
mean a 7-5 finish and a shot at a
halfway decent bowl A loss could
push the Hawkeyes to the bottom of the
bowl pecking order.
Why Iowa Might Win: Drew Tate is
way overdue. The Hawkeye senior wasn't
great against the nasty Big Ten teams
like Wisconsin, Ohio State and Michigan,
but Minnesota's defense is hardly the
same caliber. The secondary has been
awful all year long and took a turn for
the worse over the last two weeks giving
up 696 yards and four touchdowns, but
was saved by picking off five passes. If
Tate can be efficient and mistake free,
and if the running game can provide a
bit of balance, Minnesota's defense
doesn't have a chance to keep the Iowa
offense under 24 points.
Why Minnesota State Might Win:
The Iowa secondary can be burned.
Wisconsin's Tyler Donovan, who's hardly
Tom Brady, stepped in for and injured
John Stocco in Iowa City last week and
ripped apart the Hawkeyes with an
efficient 17 of 24, 228-yard, two
touchdown day. Gopher quarterback Bryan
Cupito has been red hot over the last
two games with six touchdown pass and no
interceptions. An experienced veteran in
his final home game, expect him to be
fantastic.
Who to Watch: Minnesota DE
William VanDeSteeg is one of the Big
Ten's rising stars coming off one of the
best defensive performances of the
team's season with four sacks against
Michigan State. With a non-stop motor
and a quick burst off the edge, the
sophomore has the potential to get into
the Iowa backfield on a regular basis
and hurry Tate, who's been mediocre this
year under pressure.
What Will Happen: Minnesota will
claim the Floyd of Rosedale trophy for
the first time in six years with a good
day from the passing game and an
inspired defensive effort.
CFN Prediction:
Minnesota 27 ... Iowa 23 ...
Line: Minnesota -3
Must See Rating: (5 skip the
birth of your first born - 1 The
Bachelor: Rome)
... 3
Michigan State
(4-7) at
Penn State
(7-4) 12 PM EST ESPN2 Saturday
November 18th
Why to Watch: It's the end of the
John L. Smith era as the disastrous
Michigan season if finally coming to an
end, while Penn State can cement itself
in the number four spot in the Big Ten
pecking order with a win. How important
is this game? All the talk is about
where Joe Paterno will coach as he
recovers from a broken leg. After
sitting home in last week's 47-0 win
over Temple, he'll be in the press box
as he continues on as college football's
indestructible icon. On the opposite end
of the spectrum, Smith is looking end
his reign on a high note trying to pull
up out of the nosedive of losing three
straight and seven of the last eight.
Why Michigan State Might Win:
Talk about having nothing to lose, MSU
might finally play loose after an
uptight last several weeks. If it wasn't
the pressure of trying to build off the
Northwestern win, it was trying to come
up with a win to potentially be bowl
eligible, or it was trying to win on the
seniors' last day, or it was trying to
prove that the Notre Dame loss didn't
matter. There was always something. Now,
there's absolutely no pressure. It's not
like Penn State is going to hang 55
points on the board, so if the Spartan
offense, which still has a bit of
firepower to work with, can get some
steam early and force the Nittany Lions
to play catch-up, this could be
interesting.
Why Penn State Might Win: Beyond
the problems Michigan State is having,
history is on Penn State's side having
obliterated the Spartans the last six
times in Happy Valley by an average
score of 47-22. If Anthony Morelli and
the Nittany Lion passing game was ever
going to find a groove, this would be
the week. MSU has given up at least 239
passing yards in each of the last five
games and has allowed thirty passing
touchdowns on the year. Only Idaho, in
the opener, didn't throw for at least
two scores.
Who to Watch: The new head coach
is going to have his own ideas and will
be certain to open up competition at
every spot, so this is sort of an
audition for the returning players. For
sophomore QB Brian Hoyer, assuming Drew
Stanton will be out recovering from a
concussion, this is his chance to show
that he can be the future of the offense
no matter who comes in. While he's not
the dangerous rushing threat Drew
Stanton is, he has a good arm and a
decent command of the offense showing
off his bombing ability with 330 yards
and a touchdown last week against
Minnesota. He threw two interceptions
and took too many sacks, but he showed
promise.
What Will Happen: The Temple game
aside, this should be Penn State's best
performance of the year. The Nittany
Lion linebacking corps should completely
shut down the MSU running game, the
secondary will come up with at least two
picks, and Tony Hunt will run for 150
yards and two scores.
CFN Prediction:
Penn State 34 ... Michigan State 13 ...
Line: Penn State -17.5
Must See Rating: (5 skip the
birth of your first born - 1 The
Bachelor: Rome)
... 2
Week
12
Big Ten Fearless Predictions, Part
2 |
Get
Tickets for These Games