Big Ten Week 7 Recap
By: Dakota Isgrigg | December 7th | @dakota_isgrigg | @BoilerInTexas
We are almost done with Big Ten Football 2020 and it shows. Some teams can’t wait for next week, and others can’t wait for this season to be over already.
Nebraska (2-4) 37 @ Purdue (2-4) 27
Another frustrating game for Purdue fans. Finally a second win for the Cornhuskers. Nebraska marched into West Lafayette and beat Purdue on their own field. It was a solid win for a Nebraska program that was desperate for wins.
You can read my recap of the result of this game: HERE
Up Next:
Nebraska: Minnesota
Purdue: @Indiana
#4 Ohio State (5-0) 52 @ Michigan State (2-4) 12
This was a game that was played and no one is better off because of it.
Ohio State was up 28-0 at halftime and it wasn’t even that close. Justin fields threw 2 touchdowns on his way to 199 yards passing. He also put in 104 yards and 2 touchdowns on the ground as well. The Buckeyes finish with 322 yards on the ground in an act of kindness to try and finish this game quickly. Chris Olave had a nice day as he finished with 10 receptions for 139 yards and one score. On defense, they intercept Spartan QB’s twice and keep MSU out of the endzone until the second half. Business as usual for the Bucks.
MSU did their best but they are still too far underpowered to deal with this OSU squad. Mel Tucker turned to Payton Thorne who finished 16-25 for 147 and 1 INT, Rocky Lombardi also played finishing 5-11 for 33 yards and a pick as well. The Spartans struggled to 81 yards rushing and their lone touchdown on a run from Payton Thorne. The real tale of the tape comes in turnovers (4), penalties (10 for 101 yards), and third down efficiency (3-17). This was a game that MSU wanted to get in and out as quickly as possible and move on to next week. They can do that now.
Up Next:
Ohio State: Michigan
Michigan State: @Penn State
Penn State (2-5) 23 @ Rutgers (2-5) 7
Well, this one was probably a long shot for Rutgers even before it started.
Penn State came out and just leaned on Rutgers all night using their superior talent level to hold Rutgers at bay all night. Sean Clifford didn’t need to do much as he only threw for 133 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 pick on the night. Where the Nittany Lions found success was on the ground as they pounded away at the Scarlet Knight defense to the tune of 248 yards on the ground as a team. Keyvone Lee finished with 95 yards, Devyn Ford and Will Levis had 65 each. Ford had the lone rushing touchdown for PSU. The defense held Rutgers scoreless until the third and even then that was all the Knights could muster. Penn State reaches 2-wins on the year with one left.
Schiano had Rutgers playing fairly well going into this one but they fell short against a more talented PSU team. Noah Vedral struggled going 17-30 for 113 yards and the lone touchdown for Rutgers. On the ground they also couldn’t get anything going only finishing the day with 83 yards as a unit with Vedral leading the way with 56 of them. Bo Melton caught the lone Scarlet Knight touchdown as he finished with 38 yards on 7 receptions. The Nittany Lion defense really caused issues for Rutgers as they just couldn’t get in gear offensively.
Up Next:
Penn State: Michigan State
Rutgers: @Maryland
#12 Indiana (6-1) 14 @ #16 Wisconsin (2-2) 6
A lot of eyes were on this game as it was Indiana’s first game without Penix Jr.
Indiana went into Camp Randal and played a very slow, offensively-challenged game on Saturday. That being said, new Hoosiers QB Jack Tuttle came in and did enough to secure a win. He finished 13-22 for 130 yards and two touchdown passes to no interceptions. Can’t ask for much more in the current situation. The Hoosiers offense really wasn’t it’s usual self as the team moves forward with their new QB. Wisconsin held them in check on the ground as Stevie Scott III only managed 57 yards on the ground and the team to only 87 yards total. Through the air Whop Philyor led the way with 47 yards and a score. The other touchdown was caught by Peyton Hendershot. But, the game was surely won on the defensive end as the Hoosiers held Wisconsin to only two field goals through the entire game. Getting 2 turnovers and holding the Badgers offense down all game long. Next week has the potential to really suck for Purdue fans.
Wisconsin, as opposed to IU, didn’t struggle as much on offense outside of being held out of the endzone all day. QB Graham Mertz went 20-34 for 202 yards and an interception. On the ground, Jalen Berger led the way finishing with 87 yards on 15 carries. Through the air Jake Ferguson had 54 yards on 5 catches. Other than that, nothing really stood out. The Badgers out-gained IU 342 to 217, but just couldn’t get into the endzone. They had a 50% third-down conversion percentage, and more first downs than Indiana. But, couldn’t punch it in when it mattered most. You can also make an argument that the defense did their job as well as they held Indiana to only 14 points. But at the end of the day, you have to score points to win football games as well.
Up Next:
Indiana: Purdue
Wisconsin: @Iowa
#19 Iowa (5-2) 35 @ Illinois (2-4) 21
Iowa finally seems to have remembered they are Iowa and Illinois is still Illinois.
Iowa, since losing in back to back games in week’s 1&2 have won 5 straight and looked good doing it. Spencer Petras is finally looking better as he finished 18-28 for 220 yards and 3 touchdown passes. On the ground Tyler Goodson almost reached the century mark as he managed 92 yards rushing. The lone rushing touchdown was to Ihmir Smith-Marsette who had 44 yards on 2 attempts. ISM also caught one passing touchdown along with Sam LaPorta and Shaun Beyer. It did take a bit to get this offense going though as Illinois did take a 14-0 lead in the second before Iowa Rattled of 35 unanswered points to put the game away.
Illinois was pretty close to putting a full game together before the wheels fell off in the second half. Brandon Peters threw two touchdowns in the first half to put the Illini up 14-0 on the way to a 14-13 lead going into halftime. They were very much in it until they punted on the first three drives of the second half and turning it over on downs on the fourth. Iowa scored on 3 of those ensuing drives and that was all she wrote. The Illini offense was fairly balanced as they had 199 yards passing and 149 yards on the ground. The problem was really the second half as Iowa truly clamped down and held Illinois at arms length on the way to the final margin.
Up Next:
Iowa: Wisconsin
Illinois: @Northwestern
#14 Northwestern (5-1) @ Minnesota (2-3)
Maryland (2-2) @ Michigan (2-4)
Canceled because of COVID-19.
Also, because of these cancelations. Northwestern officially wins the West. Congrats Cats.
Up Next:
Northwestern: Illinois
Minnesota: @Nebraska
Maryland: Rutgers
Michigan: Pain (@Ohio State)
