Blazing Buckeyes Batman!  Who saw that coming?  I was shocked.  Purdue pulls off one of the biggest upsets of the year in my opinion.  Boilermaker QB Joey Elliott led the way with 281 yards passing on what I thought was one of the toughest defenses in the Big Ten.  Heck, I thought they were one of the best in the country.  I wrote this one off and didn’t even bother watching this game.  How did Purdue do that?  I’m sure I am not the only one asking that question this week.  Well my hat is off to Purdue.  Nice game guys.  But in all fairness Buckeye fans you got a glimpse of Pryor’s exciting potential.  After 3 periods of being abused by the Boilermakers, Pryor tried to mount a comeback.  I watched the replay of this game and one thing I saw was a much different QB for the Buckeyes.  Pryor showed great leadership in the fourth quarter.  And overall his stats are not bad for a loss.  He passed for 221 yards and a TD plus he ran for another TD.  Devier Posey also had a good game with 87 yards receiving and a TD.  I know the Buckeye nation is stinging a little from this one but this game may be the one that slaps them back into reality.  Ohio State is now in 2^nd in the Big Ten standings behind Iowa and those two meet on November 14 at Columbus. 

Other big efforts from the Purdue game included WR’s Keith Smith with 125 yards receiving and Aaron Valentin with 97 yards and 2 TD’s.  Smith leads the team with 710 receiving yards and looks poised to hit 1000 yards easy.  Ventin leads in receiving TDs with 7 on the year.  From a fantasy outlook, the Purdue boys should be getting solid numbers in the next few weeks. 

Other games this week: Penn State held Minnesota scoreless in a 20-0 game.  It was a bad day all around for Gophers.  Even Eric Decker was held to just 42 yards.  There was no rushing or passing attack.  Maybe they were dealing with swine flu or something.  The Nittany Lions took full advantage of whatever it was that kept the gophers out of the game.  QB Daryll Clark threw for 287 yards and 1 TD while also rushing for another TD.  RB Evan Royster (pictured right, thanks Icon SMI) rushed for 137 yards and caught 23 more in this game.  Plus Derek Moye had 120 yards receiving and a TD.  Ok, so maybe the Gopher defense didn’t show up either.  Penn State now becomes the bowl eligible and they still have to play at Ann Arbor and host the Buckeyes. 

The Hawkeyes remain undefeated by beating Wisconsin at Camp Randall Stadium 20-10.  QB Ricky Stanzi had another good week posting 218 yards passing and a TD.  RB Adam Robinson got the lion’s share of the carries and posted 91 yards rushing with a TD.  WR Derrell Johnson-Koulianos had a big day with 113 yards.  That is his second game in a row with good numbers and he may be worth a look in your league.  The schedule for the remainder of the year could be favorable to the Hawkeye air game.  For the Badgers, there is not a lot to say.  RB John Clay continues to pile on the yards adding 75 rushing and 23 receiving this week. 

Northwestern WR Zeke Makshausen had 111 yards receiving and a TD against Michigan State but it wasn’t enough to put the Wildcats over the Spartans.  MSU won 24-14.  NU QB Mike Kafka had 291 yards and 2 TDs.  This game was all about Blair White though.  He had 186 yards and 2 TDs on the day.  MSU QB Kirk Cousins had a good day as well with 281 yards passing and 2 TDs. 

Ok, looking ahead we have to see what trophy is up for grabs this week.  It is the battle for the cannon this week as Purdue and Illinois face off.  Purdue has the edge in this series and I expect they will keep the cannon this year.  Get those Purdue receivers into your lineup now!

Minnesota goes to Columbus after getting shut out last week.  I don’t see much hope for them this week either.  The Buckeyes are going to be extremely focused now and I expect they will take it out on the Gophers.  Pryor is a must start in this one.  I think Eric Decker will have a decent came this week but nothing spectacular.  I am thinking maybe 60-70 yards.

Indiana at Northwestern should be a great game for your fantasy players too.  Look for Ben Chappell and Tandon Doss to have great numbers against the Wildcats.  Expect the same for Mike Kafka.  I’m still not sure what to think about ol’ Zeke Markshausen.  He seems to be good for 6-7 points each week but maybe he is ready to do more.  Start him and see.

The other two games this week are Penn State at Michigan.  The way Penn State has played lately makes me think they will win again this week.  Clark and Royster are must starts in this one.  This might be a good week to sit my favorite Wolverine, Tate Forcier.  Iowa and Michigan State meet in East Lansing.  You have to play Kirk Cousins and Blair White.  They have just been too good lately to not start.  On the Hawkeye side you have to go with Ricky Stanzi and Adam Robinson.  My heart is with the Hawkeyes but I am worried about the Spartans at home. 

Predictions:

Northwestern over Indiana, 27-17

Purdue over Illinois, 48-10

Ohio State over Minnesota, 44-21

Penn State over Michigan, 31-13

And Iowa over Michigan State, 34-33

Related posts:

1. Big 10 Week 3: Buckeye Blowout
2. B1G Review: Wisky scores 60, and two big upsets
3. Big 10-4 Review: Spartans continue fake punt attack, conference takes to air
4. Big Ten Week 5
5. Big 10-4: B1G Week 4 Review

Tags: Big 10