A Quick Look Around the Big 10, Week 3
This week is a much better week for Big Ten football than last week was, and it is a chance for a few programs to make some statement games. First, here is a quick look at the Big Ten schedule:
New Mexico @ Rutgers
Temple @ Penn State
North Dakota State @ Iowa
Georgia State @ Wisconsin
Oregon @ Nebraska
Colorado @ Michigan
Western Michigan @ Illinois
Maryland @ UCF
Michigan State @ Notre Dame
Ohio State @ Oklahoma
Duke @ Northwestern
BYE WEEK: Minnesota, Indiana, Purdue
So, this is a real chance for the Big Ten to make a couple of statement games. For one, two of the marquee match ups of the week are coming out of the Big Ten, where Michigan State and Ohio State both have a relatively tough challenge going on the road in the hostile environments of Notre Dame and Oklahoma, respectively. Also, there are two games that are really under the radar this Saturday where Nebraska hosts #22 Oregon out of the Pac-12, and Northwestern hosts a Duke team that has been really good the last few years.
Last week, the Big Ten was overall not as strong as I thought they would be. I thought Illinois had a pretty good chance of beating North Carolina in Champaign, but they got blown out 48-23. Northwestern also lost to FCS Illinois State, and that has to have put head coach Pat Fitzgerald on the borderline of the hot seat. Penn State also lost to Pittsburgh, but they only lost by three on the road. And of course, Purdue lost.
My most favorable Big Ten match up is Wisconsin hosting Georgia State out of the Sun Belt, and they still have the best win in the Big Ten so far this season. Since I cover the Badgers in depth, I already have an article written on that game so I will not discuss it here and refer you all to my previous article. My next most likely win has to belong to either Michigan hosting Colorado or Iowa hosting defending FCS champion North Dakota State. Part of it is that both of these teams are ranked considerably higher than their opponent, and also because the rest of the Big Ten is playing an opponent of their caliber, or even better than them. However, Iowa and Michigan fans should not take these teams likely, as Colorado may not be great but they are still a Pac-12 school and are used to playing quality opponents, and North Dakota State has a solid amount of talent returning from their championship team, despite former QB Carson Wentz going to the NFL.
Most likely Big Ten team to go down is usually Purdue, but since they don't play this week it becomes tougher. Rutgers is not a good team, but New Mexico is not that great either. Ohio State and Michigan State could also feasibly go down, but they could both also feasibly win as both Oklahoma and Notre Dame have already lost this season despite their high ranking. Due to that, I'm going to go with Maryland traveling to UCF. UCF is coming off a devastating loss at Michigan last week, and despite a 2-0 record, Maryland is not that good. They beat Howard and Florida International, and UCF has some talent and has even been to a BCS game recently. Plus, Maryland is the only Big Ten school on the road besides Michigan State and Ohio State, so those are my reasons for Maryland.
Finally, my game to watch is one that you probably did not know about prior to looking at the schedule above, and that is Oregon at Nebraska. Oregon is still a (distant) playoff threat due to their schedule and having to play the Pac-12 North this season, and over the years they have been a major powerhouse looking to regain that form after losing to Ohio State in the national championship game two years ago. Meanwhile, Nebraska fans are disappointed to the start they got off to in the Mike Reilly era, and this would be a signature win for coach Reilly in the non-conference slate. It would also be just as much of a significant victory for the Big Ten as the marquee games this week. Plus, Oregon's offense is still fun to watch.
