Jim Rossow's Big Ten Report

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By Jim Rossow

Friday, November 21, 2008 12:12 AM CDT

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To watch video of Northwestern quarterback C.J. Bacher break down Illinois, click here

Sports editor Jim Rossow's weekly look around the world of Big Ten football:

The Standings

TEAM BIG TEN ALL

Penn State 6 1 10 1

Michigan State 6 1 9 2

Ohio State 6 1 9 2

Northwestern 4 3 8 3

Iowa 4 3 7 4

Minnesota 3 4 7 4

Illinois 3 4 5 6

Wisconsin 3 5 6 5

Michigan 2 5 3 8

Indiana 1 6 3 8

Purdue 1 6 3 8

The Schedule

Want to know which of Saturday's games are worth your time? Here's the scoop from sports editor Jim Rossow, who became bowl eligible with a 4-1 week:

Indiana at Purdue, 11 a.m., ESPN2: Bill Lynch can become the first Indiana coach to win back-to-back Old Oaken Bucket games since Bill Mallory in 1993 and '94. The Boilermakers have won 11 of 13 since Joe Tiller took over in 1997.

Rossow's pick: Purdue, 31-30

Michigan at Ohio State, 11 a.m., WICD (ABC): Buckeyes, who have won four in a row in the series, never have had a five-game win streak against Michigan, which holds a 57-41-6 edge on the Buckeyes.

Rossow's pick: Ohio State, 31-0

Cal-Poly at Wisconsin, 2:30 p.m., Big Ten Network: Badgers are riding a 19-game winning streak against nonconference opponents in the regular season (their last loss was at UNLV in 2003). In addition, the Badgers have won 32 of their last 34 nonconference home games dating to 1995.

Rossow's pick: Wisconsin, 24-7

Illinois at Northwestern, 2:30 p.m., Big Ten Network: If he stays healthy, C.J. Bacher could move into second place on Northwestern's career completions chart. With two games left, he has 615 and trails only Brett Basanez (913) and Len Williams (644).

Rossow's pick: Northwestern, 31-17

No. 17 Michigan State at No. 7 Penn State, 11 a.m., WICD (ABC): Penn State is one win away from joining Michigan, Notre Dame, Texas, Nebraska and Ohio State as programs with 800 victories. Michigan is the NCAA leader with 872. Also inching closer to 800: Alabama (798), Oklahoma (785), Tennessee (774) and Southern Cal (762).

Rossow's pick: Michigan State, 27-21

Iowa at Minnesota, 6 p.m., Big Ten Network: Shonn Greene has a chance to become the first Big Ten player since Curtis Enis in 1997 with 100 yards rushing in all eight Big Ten games. Wisconsin's Anthony Davis reached 100 yards in every Big Ten game he played in 2001, but he missed one game.

Rossow's pick: Minnesota, 24-23

Bowl Schedule

DATE BOWL

Dec. 20 Congressional Bowl

Dec. 20 New Mexico Bowl

Dec. 20 St. Petersburg Bowl

Dec. 20 Las Vegas Bowl

Dec. 21 New Orleans Bowl

Dec. 23 Poinsettia Bowl

Dec. 24 Hawaii Bowl

Dec. 26 Motor City Bowl

Dec. 27 Meineke Car Care Bowl

Dec. 27 Emerald Bowl

Dec. 27 Champs Bowl

Dec. 28 Independence Bowl

Dec. 29 Papajohns.com Bowl

Dec. 29 Alamo Bowl

Dec. 30 Humanitarian Bowl

Dec. 30 Holiday Bowl

Dec. 30 Texas Bowl

Dec. 31 Armed Forces Bowl

Dec. 31 Sun Bowl

Dec. 31 Music City Bowl

Dec. 31 Insight Bowl

Dec. 31 Chick-fil-A Bowl

Jan. 1 Outback Bowl

Jan. 1 Gator Bowl

Jan. 1 Capital One Bowl

Jan. 1 Rose Bowl

Jan. 1 Orange Bowl

Jan. 2 Cotton Bowl

Jan. 2 Liberty Bowl

Jan. 2 Sugar Bowl

Jan. 3 International Bowl

Jan. 5 Fiesta Bowl

Jan. 6 GMAC Bowl

Jan. 8 BCS title game

Rossow's Random Thoughts

LOOKING AHEAD: How does this sound: Illinois, 2009 Big Ten champ? As down as the league is this year, it could be worse next fall as Ohio State and Penn State face major losses to graduation and early NFL departures, Michigan State loses Brian Hoyer and Javon Ringer, and Iowa probably will have to replace Shonn Greene. That creates an opening for teams like Illinois, which will have talent and scheduling (Purdue and Michigan State replace Iowa and Wisconsin) on its side.

TALKING TURKEY: Though the Big Ten won't host a championship game any time soon, it will join a number of other conferences playing football after Thanksgiving next season. Illinois hasn't announced its entire schedule but is expected to play Cincinnati on Nov. 28. That allows Illinois to have an open date Sept. 19, and it couldn't come at a better time what with consecutive games against Ohio State, Penn State and Michigan State to open the Big Ten season.

WHATEVER HAPPENED TO ... Greg Colby. The former Danville High star, two-sport Illini, Schlarman High coach and Lou Tepper assistant recently completed his first season as head coach at Division II Millersville (Pa.). It's been a tough stretch for Colby, who was defensive coordinator last season for a Northwestern team that allowed 410 yards per game. After the Wildcats let him go, he took over at Millersville and went 1-10, including a 63-3 loss to Tepper's Indiana (Pa.) squad.

Temperature Check

Who's Hot

JIM TRESSEL: By beating 20-point underdog Michigan, he'll join Minnesota's Bernie Bierman and Michigan's Bo Schembechler and Fielding Yost as the only Big Ten coaches with at least five Big Ten titles in his first eight years. He also will become the fifth coach to win at least four in a row, joining Schembechler, Yost, Michigan's Harry Kipke and Ohio State's Woody Hayes.

IOWA: Not only are the Hawkeyes moving up the bowl ladder, they're in possession of all three trophies they play for: Heartland (Wisconsin), Cy-Hawk (Iowa State) and Floyd of Rosedale (Minnesota). They need to win Saturday to retain the bronze pig. "We're thrilled to have all three of them right now. But realize, it's short-term parking," coach Kirk Ferentz said. "Obviously if we don't do our job Saturday, we're going to lose one of them."

ROOKIE MICHIGAN COACHES: At least against Ohio State. The last six first-year coaches at Michigan have beaten Ohio State, and rookies are 10-1-1 all time in their first game against the Buckeyes (including five wins on the road). The only coach to slip up: Kipke in 1929. The good news for Rich Rodriguez, who likely will become the second coach to open with a loss to Ohio State? Kipke went on to win four Big Ten titles and two national championships.

Who's Warm

JUICE WILLIAMS: The Illini quarterback leads the league in interceptions and his team has flopped, but the junior is closing in on becoming the fourth Big Ten quarterback with 2,000 yards rushing. He needs 44 against Northwestern to join Indiana's Antwaan Randle El (3,895), Minnesota's Ricky Foggie (2,150) and Ohio State's Cornelius Greene (2,066).

JAY VALAI: Wisconsin safety is averaging 4.8 tackles per game – 4.8 really hard tackles. But his tenacity has led to complaints from opponents. Last week, he sheared the "M" off the Minnesota helmet of Shady Salamon. Earlier, he sent two Ohio State players and Indiana quarterback Ben Shappell to the sideline with injuries. Ohio State coach Tressel went as far as to send a tape to Big Ten officials.

BEANIE WELLS: We'd love to know his secret to success against good teams (In his past two seasons as a starter, in nine games against ranked teams he has rushed for 1,118 yards, averaged 5.6 yards a carry and scored nine times). But the Ohio State tailback wasn't available to reporters this week. Maybe because it's Michigan week. Or maybe, as is the case with Illinois' Vontae Davis, he's tired of answering "Are you going to the NFL?" questions.

Who's Cold

INDIANA DOWN THE STRETCH: The Hoosiers have been outscored 187-68 in the second half. It's gotten worse in November, Indiana's last three opponents doing in the Hoosiers 71-13 in the final two quarters.

DONSAY HARDEMAN: Not only did he commit a critical penalty that led to an Ohio State score, the Illinois safety became highlight-reel fodder when he played hurdle for Wells. His attempted tackle wasn't the first time an Illini has been jumped over by an opposing running back. In Ron Zook's first season, Rutgers' Brian Leonard cleared Illini cornerback Charles Bailey in another made-for-ESPN play.

MICHIGAN'S ROSTER: They're jumping ship in Ann Arbor, where two players – defensive tackle Jason Kates and receiver Zion Babb – either left the team or were dismissed this week. Rumors persist that tailback Sam McGuffie will transfer closer to his Texas home. "There may be more attrition. We want everyone to make a total commitment to our football program, especially academically," Rodriguez said. "We'll see what happens in the next few weeks."

Gimme fives

This week's rankings, courtesy sports editor Jim Rossow

Big Ten MVP

PLAYER PREVIOUS

1. Shonn Greene, Iowa 1

2. James Laurinaitis, Ohio St. 3

3. Aaron Maybin, Penn State 4

4. Terrelle Pryor, Ohio State 5

5. Javon Ringer, Michigan State 2

Illinois MVP

ILLINI PREVIOUS

1. Brit Miller 1