As inexorably as the fall season shifts into winter, so goes the Big Ten conference and the collisions of her teams each weekend on the football field, winners and losers emerge and time marches forward. And just as the fall in it's inevitable march towards winter has it's arboreal display of fireworks, so to does the Big Ten offer its own display of gridiron explosives. This weekend we are treated to one such display as Tony Ritz's proud and flagging? alma mater does battle with Ohio State. Suddenlystruttin will be in attendance for that game and we're quite pumped to be headed for Columbus which has a gameday atmosphere most reminiscent of a carnival taking place in a demilitarized zone. "Drink this Coors Light and 'Tussin mixer and get ready for Ohio Fucking State Football!"
non-Big Ten Game of Note
Arizona State vs Oregon 6:40 pm, EST, ESPN: A rare nationally televised game for the strange West Coast product known as Pac 10 football. Arizona State and Oregon are decidedly "jacked" this season and I'm already drooling at the prospect of witnessing this game from the relative safety of a bar/bunker in the Hell on Earth that is Columbus after a game. The combined offensive production for these two squads whence pitted against one another should approach 1,000 yards if not surpass that number. I'm taking Oregon, what with the game being in Eugene.
Oregon 45 Arizona State 42
Big Ten Games
Purdue vs Paterno State noon, EST, ESPN: Paterno State must rebound after being burned like a pile of brush in southern California by Ohio State last week. The Nittany Lions defense sohuld smother Purdue's offense along the line of scrimmage thanks to the strength of the defensive line. Purdue should do all they can to get the ball to Dorien Bryant on offense and on defense they should just let PSU qb Anthony Morelli do his thing, and by "thing" I mean screw up royally.
Paterno State 23 Purdue 17
Iowa vs Team Slumpbuster, noon, EST, ESPN2 The Hawkeyes are coming off a hard fought and statistically misleading overtime victory over Michigan State last week and are completely due for a letdown. That being said, Team Slumpbuster is stil Team Slumpbuster, however, I'm going with Northwestern's "eh" offense against Iowa's not-so-impervious defense.
Team Slumpbuster 24 Iowa 13
Ball State vs Indiana, noon, EST, Big Ten Network As gamely as Ball State played last week against Illinois, I've got a hunch that Indiana will roll over the Cardinals. James Hardy and Kellen Lewis should get back on the same page this week and Hardy is due for a big game against a mediocre pass defense after being shut out of the end zone for the first time all season last week.
Indiana 35 Ball State 21
Wisconsin vs Ohio State noon, EST, Big Ten Network: Inexplicably this game is being broadcast on the small-market Big Ten Network, "the home of mediocre announcing since 2007!" I cannot begin to fathom how pissed off I would be if I awoke on Saturday morning fully expecting to watch this game on ABC or ESPN only to discover that the game is on a channel my cable provider does not carry. Thankfully, that scenario only exists in my mind and I, of course, will be risking life and limb in the hornets nest that is Columbus, Ohio. The over/under on my survival will fluctuate drastically with the decision of me to sport my Wisconsin tee on the streets or only inside the still-unsafe but marginally more patrolled confines of the Horseshoe.
The over/under and outcome of the actal game, sadly, is not nearly as variable and I fully expect Ohio State to suffocate the life out of Wisconsin's talentless offense. The only way the Badgers keep it close is if their defense embodies that of the tent raiding Badger of last year instead of the cartoon Pirate Badger that's been on the field the majority of this season.
Ohio State 31 Wisconsin 10
Michigan vs Michigan State, 3:30 EST, ABC: Michigan should have no trouble with Michigan State. Henne should find Mario Manningham and the rest of the receiving corps wide open all game long, which should set up Mike Hart perfectly for the play-action runs that UM can run so well. Javon Ringer will be MSU's only hope and if he can squeak past the Wolverines rejuvenated and still massive defensive line, he could do some damage...
Michigan 27 Michigan State 14
Illinois vs Minnesota, 8:00 pm, Big Ten Network: Rashard Mendenhall and Juice Williams all day. Minnesota does not have a prayer.
Illinois 42 Minnesota 20
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3 comments:
Can we start referring to Purdue as "Team Slumpbuster for Quality Opponents" or something similar? They never seem to win against decent teams.
No way, Jose. Northwesern earned it's nickname through decades of non-competitiveness.
Hasn't MSU though? How about "Second half of the season slumpbuster"? I mean, everyone knows MSU can't win a game after October rolls around. That's been going on for what, at least a decade?
Hope you had fun in C-block, I was near a heart attack during the PSU-Purdue game.
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