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Western Michigan
(3-7) at Iowa (6-5)
3:30 PM Big Ten Network
Why to watch: The last time
these two played, Western
Michigan pulled off a 27-21
shocker in 2000 to set the tone
for a miserable Hawkeye
campaign. Since then, Iowa has
feasted off MAC teams winning
ten straight including a 16-3
win over Northern Illinois. Iowa
desperately needs this win to
stay in the hunt for a bowl
game, with a loss likely meaning
it'll be on the outside looking
in with the Big Ten not having
enough slots for all its
eligible teams. On a three-game
winning streak, and a nice run
of four wins in five weeks
sparked by the upset over
Illinois, this is one of the
hotter Big Ten teams. Western
Michigan still has a date with
Temple, and it can salvage
something out of a tremendously
disappointing season with an
upset this week. On a three-game
losing streak, anything positive
would be nice after blowing any
shot at making some late noise
in the MAC race with a loss to
Central Michigan.
Why
Western Michigan
might win: Iowa couldn't blowout
Minnesota. You and ten friends
could hang 45 on the Gophers.
The Hawkeye offense is hit or
miss, failing to generate
consistent production from any
one area and failing to come up
with the same game twice.
Western Michigan is having the
same issues with its attack, but
if Iowa lets down thinking this
will be a layup, there's a
chance Tim Hiller and the WMU
passing game could get up early.
It had better because ...
Why Iowa might win: ... it'll be
a major shock if the Broncos can
get 100 yards rushing. Iowa's
defensive front seven might is
the best the Broncos have faced
since the season opener against
West Virginia, and the WMU O
line isn't anything special. To
have a shot, WMU has to be
nearly perfect, and it won't be.
Turnovers have been a major
issue giving away ten in the
last three games.
Who to watch:
It's redemption time for Western
Michigan WR Jamarko Simmons. One
of the MAC's best playmakers,
and the Broncos' best receiver,
he was booted out of last week's
game against Central Michigan,
the team's biggest of the year,
after kicking a player after a
big tackle. He went nuts on the
sidelines thinking the ejection
was unfair, and now he wants to
make it up to his team with a
big game. He has four
double-digit catch game on the
year, but hasn't gotten into the
end zone in his last five games.
That has to change this week.
What will happen: Iowa's
defense will make up for the
mediocre offense and shut down
WMU from the start. The Hawkeyes
aren't going to lose Senior Day
for the second year in a row.
CFN Prediction:
Iowa
28 ... Western Michigan 13
...
Line: Iowa -13
Must See
Rating: (5
On
HBO, "Michigan vs. Ohio State:
The Rivalry"
- 1 Writer strike induced
reruns) ...1.5
Penn State
(8-3) at Michigan State
(6-5)
3:30 PM ABC
Why to watch: In what was a
dead-even rivalry over the
years, Penn State has taken over
winning three straight over the
Spartans. Getting a fourth in a
row could ensure a New Year's
Day bowl bid for the Nittany
Lions, but would most likely put
them fourth in the pecking
order. Part of the theme this
weekend around the Big Ten is
the need for several
already-eligible teams to win to
be assured of a bowl spot.
Michigan State is a good
position with the Motor City
Bowl likely to want the Spartan
crown to fill seats in Ford
Field, but a win this week still
might be a must. After losing
five games in six weeks,
including overtime heartbreakers
to Northwestern and Iowa, and
with the collapse against
Michigan, MSU could've packed it
in. Instead it turned things
around with a win over Purdue in
one of its better offensive
showings of the year. Penn State
has basically gone chalk with
wins over all the teams it was
supposed to beat and losses to
the teams it was supposed to
lose to, and that includes, in
hindsight, Illinois. Michigan
State is a team it's supposed to
beat, and if it can come out of
East Lansing with a win along
with a bowl victory, Joe Paterno
will have his second double
digit-win season in three years.
Why
Penn State
might win: Ohio State. Michigan
State got the passing game going
to beat Purdue last week, but
for the most part, it has to get
its tremendous running game
going to win. That's probably
not going to happen against the
Nittany Lion linebacking corps
that keys the nation's fourth
best run defense. Ohio State was
able to stuff the Spartans with
James Laurinaitis coming up with
12 tackles and Marcus Freeman
coming up with seven stops. Dan
Connor and Sean Lee should be
able to keep the MSU's Javon
Ringer from breaking off too
many, if any, big runs.
Why Michigan State might win: If
MSU can crank its pass rush up
to 11 and make Penn State become
one dimensional, it should have
a chance. When the Spartans come
up with three sacks or more,
they're 6-0. When they get fewer
than three, they're 0-5. Penn
State's offensive line is great
for the running game, but has
been merely average in pass
protection. MSU will get at
least three sacks.
Who to watch:
Michigan State's running game
has taken center stage all year
while junior QB Brian Hoyer has
been lost in the shuffle. He
hasn't needed to be explosive,
but he's had to keep his
mistakes to a minimum while
keeping the chains moving. He
picked a great time to come up
with one of his best games of
the year, completing 22 of 31
passes for 266 yards and two
touchdowns, along with a rushing
score, against Purdue. Filling
in for Drew Stanton at the end
of last year, he had a strong
day in the loss to Penn State
throwing it 61 times for 291
yards and a touchdown with no
interceptions. Now he's going to
have to make some deep throws
early on to open things up just
a crack for his running game. He
failed to do that against Ohio
State, and the linebackers teed
off. If he can't get Connor and
Lee on their heels just a little
bit, MSU might not have a
chance.
What will happen: Penn
State has the better team with
the right mix and the right
formula to beat Michigan State,
but Spartan head coach Mark
Dantonio is quickly changing the
culture around East Lansing and
will have his team playing one
of its best games of the year.
MSU will win on Senior Day for
the first time since 2004
CFN Prediction:
Michigan
State 27 ... Penn State
23
...
Line: Penn State -2
Must See
Rating: (5
On
HBO, "Michigan vs. Ohio State:
The Rivalry"
- 1 Writer strike induced
reruns) ... 3
Wisconsin
(8-3) at Minnesota
(1-10)
3:30 PM Big Ten Network
Why to watch: The longest
running rivalry among FBS teams
with the Badgers and Gophers
going at it for the 117th time.
Wisconsin has won the Paul
Bunyan Axe four of the last five
times, and is coming into the
game playing its best football
of the season winning three of
its last four games highlighted
by last week's win over
Michigan. Even the loss at Ohio
State wasn't bad with the
Badgers leading after three
quarters. On the flip side, the
Gophers are having one of its
worst seasons in the long and
storied history with nine
straight losses including last
week's 21-16 defeat at Iowa. As
the only Big Ten team not bowl
eligible, this is it for
Minnesota as its ending its
season in mid-November for the
first time since 2001. For
Wisconsin, a win keeps a dream
of a New Year's Day bowl alive,
but it's probably headed for the
Alamo Bowl no matter what
happens.
Why
Wisconsin
might win: Wisconsin was playing
well despite a slew of major
injuries, and now it's getting
healthy. Star RB P.J. Hill is
expected to be back after
missing most of the last two
games hurt. He got five carries
against Michigan, and while he
might not be ready to handle a
full workload again, he should
get more work. Even if it's Zach
Brown getting most of the
carries, he should be able to
run wild behind an offensive
line playing as well as it has
all year. Now that tackle Eric
Vanden Heuvel is back, the
Badgers are healthier up front
and should be able to pound away
at will on the nation's 112th
ranked run defense.
Why Minnesota might win:
Wisconsin was able to handle
Indiana's Kellen Lewis without a
problem, but it has struggled
with mobile quarterbacks
throughout the year and had
problems earlier this year with
the spread offenses of UNLV and
Citadel. The only shot Minnesota
has of pulling off the upset is
if QB Adam Weber has the game of
his life. Lost in this horrific
season has been a solid
statistical year from the
freshman with 3,073 yards of
total offense helped by 530
rushing yards. He needs to be on
the move early and often, and
his decision making has to be
flawless, or this will be a
blowout.
Who to watch:
Wisconsin might be healing up a
bit, but one of its key cogs, QB
Tyler Donovan, is iffy after
getting beaten up by Michigan.
The Wolverines made a point to
hit No. 12 over and over again,
occasionally a bit too
aggressively (to be polite).
Donovan has been a steady senior
leader who has been surprisingly
impressive throwing the ball
with no interceptions against
Ohio State and Michigan and just
two picks thrown in the last
month. Backup Allan Evridge, the
Kansas State transfer who was
neck-and-neck with Donovan for
the job in the off-season, has
mostly handed the ball off so
far. If he plays, that's all
he'll likely do with the UW
gameplan to be all about
pounding the ball.
What will happen:
Wisconsin will pile up over 500
yards of offense as it keeps the
axe for the fourth straight
year.
CFN Prediction:
Wisconsin
41 ... Minnesota 20
...
Line: Wisconsin -13.5
Must See
Rating: (5
On
HBO, "Michigan vs. Ohio State:
The Rivalry"
- 1 Writer strike induced
reruns) ... 2
Big 10 Week 12 Predictions, Part
1 |
