Around the Big Ten: Football - Week 7
Host Mike Brown alongside Chris Hess and Matt McClure discuss what to expected this week from Big Ten football:
Another week of Big Ten football is upon us, and there is an array of matchups that will have significant implications on where a team could end up at the end of the season. So with that being said, let’s take a look at the five most intriguing matchups the Big Ten has to offer in week seven:
Maryland (3-2) @ Purdue (1-4) 12:00 PM
After two hideous loses to Temple and Penn State, the Terrapins bounced back in a convincing 48-7 win against Rutgers. Running back Anthony McFarland Jr. led the way with two touchdowns and quarterback Josh Jackson threw two through the air.
Purdue has struggled to get things going this year. The Boilermakers have lost three consecutive games, with the most recent coming to Penn State 35-7. This one will be close for a half, but Maryland will pull away in the second half and win it easily.
No. 16 Michigan (4-1) @ Illinois (2-3) 12:00 PM
Michigan travels to Illinois after a tight, hard-fought, 10-3 win last week over Iowa. The Wolverines scored the first 10 points of the game in the first quarter and were able to hold on in the fourth quarter. The defense forced four Iowa turnovers, including three interceptions and a fumble. Quarterback Shea Patterson continues to be mediocre at best, but the running game and defense have done its job for the team so far.
Illinois comes in after taking a 40-17 loss to Minnesota last weekend. The Fighting Illini scored on a pick-six in the first quarter, but the Gophers answered back with a big second half to take them down. This is going to be a tough test for Illinois, but this Michigan team looks like two different teams each week so that this one could be on upset alert.
Michigan State (4-2, 2-1) @ No. 8 Wisconsin (5-0, 2-0) 3:30 PM
The road doesn’t get much easier for Michigan State this week against Wisconsin. Last week, the Spartans traveled to Columbus to play Ohio State. It didn’t go too well as Ohio State scored 24 points in the second quarter and went on to win 34-10. Quarterback Brian Lewerke and the offense struggled to find a groove and will need to step up this week.
The Badgers are coming off a bye week and will be ready to go in this game. Although the team won two weeks ago against Northwestern, it wasn’t pretty. Wisconsin’s running game in Jonathon Taylor and the big offensive line will be the difference in this Big Ten showdown.
Nebraska (4-2, 2-1) @ Minnesota (5-0, 2-0) 7:30 PM
Following an embarrassing loss to Ohio State two weeks ago, Nebraska bounced back against Northwestern 13-10. Nebraska hasn’t looked good at all over the last two games, and it will be vital for the offense to score some points this week. The Cornhuskers will have to rely on the run game in this one to keep it close.
The most surprising team in the Big Ten has to be Minnesota. They have had some scares at the beginning of the season against South Dakota and Georgia Southern, but have been able to hold on. Head coach has P.J. Fleck has done an excellent job to start the season, and has the opportunity to lead the Gopher to a 6-0 record to start the season since his tenure as head coach. Last week, Minnesota took down Illinois 40-17 and will look to stay hot at home against the Cornhuskers.
No. 10 Penn State (5-0, 2-0) @ No. 17 Iowa (4-1, 1-1) 7:30 PM
Here is the marquee game of the week in the Big Ten: Penn State at Iown. The Nittany Lions are rolling right now with comfortable victories over Maryland and Purdue the last two weeks. However, this is the toughest test for Nittany Lions yet. Quarterback Sean Clifford has developed each week nicely, but the world will see if he can handle the pressure in a hostile environment Saturday night.The defense has been lockdown all year long and is expected to continue that way against a struggling Iowa offense.
Iowa only put up three points against Michigan last and will have to do better than that this week to have a chance. The last time these two foes met at Kinnick Stadium was in 2017, where Penn State won on the last play of the game. That is probably in the back of the Hawkeyes heads this week and they will fight hard in this game.
Other Big Ten Game: Rutgers @ Indiana 12:00 PM
Byes: Ohio State, Northwestern
Matthew McClure is a senior majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact, email mcm5964@psu.edu.
About the Contributors
Christopher Hess
Fifth Year / Broadcast Journalism
Hailing from Long Island, Christopher is a fifth-year with experience broadcasting football, volleyball, hockey, baseball, softball and public address announcing. Chris has been featured on State College Saturdays, CommRadio’s Saturday college football pregame show, Daylate Tailgate, CommRadio’s Sunday college football recap show, and on a number of podcasts. Chris also writes a number of articles during football and hockey season and is an insider for the men’s hockey team. Chris is also a co-host on Hockey Night in State College and 1st & 10. Chris is interested in either play-by-play or working in the sports media department for a college or professional sports team alongside being a sports radio personality. To contact Chris, email @christopherhess22@gmail.com.
Matthew McClure
Senior / Broadcast Journalism
With his hard-work and dedication to excellence, Matthew McClure looks to achieve future goals in sports broadcasting. He is from Glenmoore, Pennsylvania and a senior broadcast journalism major at Pennsylvania State University. He has experience working in sports and is willing to work outside his comfort zone. Matthew served as an active member at CommRadio, where he performed many different play by play broadcasts, wrote articles, and is a host of his NBA talk radio show Half Court. The past two summers, Matthew moved to Florida to work as an communications intern at the Florida Collegiate Summer Baseball League. There, he broadcasted every game for the Seminole County Scorpions, and was presented with the Sara Whiting Young Professionals Award.
