Big Ten Recap -- Week 3 -- Brian Meyer

Big Ten Recap – Week 3

Yet another mixed bag from the Big Ten this week. The conference season is just around the corner, as teams make the final preparations for the race to the Rose Bowl.

Results Saturday

Purdue 59 Southeast Missouri State 0
Michigan 31 Eastern Michigan 3
Iowa 31 Pittsburgh 27
Penn State 14 Temple 10
Minnesota 29 Miami (OH) 23
Nebraska 51 Washington 38
Wisconsin 49 Northern Illinois 7
Notre Dame 31 Michigan State 13
Army 21 Northwestern 14
Indiana 38 South Carolina State 21
Illinois 17 Arizona State 14
Miami (FL) 24 Ohio State 6

Illinois: The Illini got the signature win for the conference this past week. The defense played outstanding against a pretty solid Sun Devil offense. Arizona State was very effective against Missouri in their previous game. This is a big win for Illinois, as they haven’t had much luck in recent years outside of the conference. With Ohio State looking as bad as they did, I don’t think it is out of the question to consider Illinois as Wisconsin’s biggest threat in the Leaders division. Next Game: Vs. Western Michigan

Indiana: The Hoosiers finally got a win, albeit against FCS Southeast (South Carolina State). It’s not crazy to say that this might be the only win Indiana gets all season long. I guess we never really know, as anything can happen in conference play. Indiana gets another chance to pick up a non-conference win next week, in a winnable situation. Next Game: At North Texas

Iowa: Oh boy, what a comeback! I was almost ready to stick the first nail in the coffin, but towards the end of the 3rd quarter I started thinking about Michigan’s insane comeback vs. Notre Dame last week, and also Auburn’s late game heroics over the past 2 years. This was the biggest Iowa comeback in school history. The light switch seemed to just turn on for Junior Quarterback James Vandenberg. I still maintain that this team is going to be playing Wisconsin in Indianapolis for the first ever Big Ten Championship game in December. If they play like they did in the 4th quarter, that may come true. Next Game: Vs. Louisiana-Monroe

Michigan: The question the media was asking all week was how does Michigan get up for Eastern Michigan after the big emotional win over Notre Dame last week? After a slow start, the Wolverines answered that. Michigan still has a lot of question marks on the defensive side of the football. Teams like Nebraska and Wisconsin are going to eat them alive. They have a tough little test against Brady Hoke’s former team next week in the Big House. Next Game: Vs. San Diego State

Michigan State: The Spartans teased me a little bit last week by handling a lesser opponent in a manner that they were supposed to. They follow that up with this abortion of a performance. Notre Dame toyed with Michigan State from the opening kickoff to the end, and Sparty had no answers. If this is any indication of how Michigan State is, then we need to look at last season as a mirage. Just a dismal performance. Next Game: Vs. Central Michigan

Minnesota: Like Indiana, the Gophers finally got in the win column. This was a very good win for a team that desperately needed it. Miami (OH) is a solid MAC team who had some attributes that had given Minnesota problems over the first couple weeks. Now they have the tricky North Dakota State Bison coming to town with legions of fans. This is as close to an in-state rivalry game that the Gophers have, and recent years has proven that to be true. With that said, there is ZERO reason the Gophers should not be able to beat FCS Midwest, at home, and get to .500. Next Game: Vs. North Dakota State

Nebraska: The Huskers played the Huskies for the 3rd time in less than 12 months. Nebraska had a lot of problems slowing down the Washington offense. Trend or Mirage? Taylor Martinez was throwing the ball very well, and the Husker offense looked excellent. I’m concerned about the strength of a team, at home, getting trounced. Huskers won, and the offense looked good, but there are some concerns in Lincoln. They have a 2 game road trip. At Wyoming next week, and then the big game, potential preview of the inaugural Big Ten Championship game, at Wisconsin in 2 weeks. Next Game: At. Wyoming

Northwestern: Northwestern took a step backwards losing on the road at Army. This is a disappointing finish for a team that had an excellent chance of going 3-0 before conference play. The win at Boston College is losing its shine as well, as BC continues to lose. Pat Fitzgerald will get two weeks to regroup, they are off next week, and then it’s conference play. Next Game: At Illinois (Oct 1)

Ohio State: Pathetic! Next Game: Vs. Colorado

Penn State: For the 2nd year in a row the Nittany Lions struggled with Temple. Temple hasn’t beat Penn State since Joe Paterno was 15 years old. It almost happened on Saturday, but Penn State pulled it out. They’re still trying both Matt McGloin and Rob Bolden at quarterback. Both of them suck. This is a problem. PSU will be relying on their defense to carry them through. There is no evidence that suggests this team will get anywhere near a conference title. Next Game: Vs. Eastern Michigan

Purdue: The Boilermakers got an FCS team to beat up on. Good for them. They still aren’t very good. Opportunities present themselves, and Notre Dame comes to town for their annual tussle. If they can pull off the upset, they will be 3-1 going into conference play. Not a bad position to be in, in terms of beating your rival. Irish looked good on Saturday, so I don’t see that happening. Next Game: Vs. Notre Dame

Wisconsin: 3 Patsies, 3 beat downs. A 4th one will happen next week against South Dakota. Then the big game in 2 weeks at home against Nebraska. Not much more to add here, the Badgers are a solid team, and are the only team that hasn’t shown any weaknesses over the first 3 weeks, albeit against weak opponents.

My Week 3 Big Ten Rankings:
1. (1) Wisconsin
2. (2) Nebraska
3. (6) Illinois
4. (7) Michigan
5. (9) Iowa
6. (3) Ohio State
7. (4) Northwestern
8. (5) Michigan State
9. (8) Penn State
10. (10) Minnesota
11. (11) Purdue
12. (12) Indiana

Around the country: Finally saw Oklahoma. Good win for them, on the road at the Doak in Tallahassee. Herbstreit said it best “Don’t think this stadium has been this loud since Chris Weinkie was Quarterback.” He was absolutely right. Really tough to quantify how good the Sooners are, as Florida State was overrated to me. My first national rankings will be unveiled in 2 weeks. The team to keep your eye on though, is Stanford. Andrew Luck is the real deal, and they have a balanced attack. They are also pretty solid on defense as well.