Remember back to that classic finish – four seconds left before what appeared to be overtime and Kirk Cousins flung a 44 yard Hail Mary pass that looked like it was going to be knocked down only to land in the hands of Keith Nichol who then fought and got the ball to break the plane.  Amazing finish – Michigan State won 37 – 31.

Keith Nichol celebrates Spartan wim, says Hail Marys afterward.

Wisconsin went into a skid after that loss.  This time the Badgers will look to redeem themselves and win the Big Ten Championship by beating the team that has been a thorn in their side recently.

My favorite part of this is we get a rematch from that great game.  I was hoping for overtime back in October.  Finally I will get to see more of these two teams playing each other now.

The other part I love is that last year these teams shared the Big Ten Championship last year.  No sharing this year.  We have one more game to decide who gets the newest and most sought after trophy in the Big Ten, the Stagg (Paterno redacted) Championship Trophy.

How do they stack up? Read the rest of this entry →

The end of the season is near and so is Thanksgiving.  Time to be thankful for a few things and get ready for some rival games.  First thing I have to be thankful for is You Tube.  I don’t know how many times I have had the Lee Corso over excited moment from last week sent to me.  I laugh every time I watch it though. I’m not going to apologize for that.  Next I have to give thanks for Tito’s Vodka.  It helps make the Thanksgiving Martinis special.  Of course the rival games are a delight I enjoy.  I just wish Texas hadn’t destroyed the Big 12 and we could continue to watch the A&M-TU game.  Guess I will just have to enjoy a big helping of Michigan – Ohio State.  I’m sure the Big Ten Network can help me out with that.  Before you start cramming your pie hole full of bird and stuffing, here is a preview of this weeks Big Ten action.   Read the rest of this entry →

Cooler weather is moving in across the nation.  Thanksgiving is just around the corner and we are in the home stretch of another football season.  The Legends and Leaders divisions both have one leader.  Could it possibly be a Penn State against Michigan State Big Ten title game?  Wisconsin, Michigan and Nebraska are all lurking in second place looking for their chance to make a run for the title.  Yes, expanding the Big Ten and creating a conference championship game was the right decision.  All games matter this week.  It does make the end of the season a lot more interesting.  Will anyone be able to gain any ground on the division leaders this week?  Here is a preview of this weeks games.

Nebraska at Michigan
Right out of the gate we have a top 25 game and both these teams are tied for second in the Legends division.  Not only does this game feature two top 25 teams, it also features two of the four programs with the most wins in college football history.  Michigan has 892 all time wins to Nebraska’s 845.  History and traditions collide.  Come on Big Ten, where is the trophy for this game?  Nebraska has the second ranked offense in scoring and rushing in the Big Ten.  The running game is anchored by Rex Burkhead and Taylor Martinez.  Burkhead is currently ranked third in the Big Ten in rushing.  They love to run the ball and they run it well.  The Wolverines feature the third ranked offense in scoring.  Led by Deanrd Robinson the Michigan offense is ranked 11th in the nation in rushing but the more impressive statistic is their number one ranking at yards per catch.  When Robinson isn’t doing the work, Fitzgerald Toussaint has been able to take some of the focus off of Robinson and open up the running game.  Both offenses are fun to watch.  This game means the winner still has a shot at the Big Ten title.  This is going to be a big game.  Watch it, enjoy it.
Prediction:  Nebraska 34 Michigan 31 Read the rest of this entry →

What a week.  I never thought I would see the headlines read that Joe Paterno was fired.  Riots in Happy Valley.  What is next, Occupy Wall Street protesters electing a leader?  The Big Ten has suddenly become a haven for scandals.  I’m sure we will all be reading about this for the next few weeks so I am not going to spend a lot of time on the topic.  My heart goes out to the victims of this tragic event.  I am going to spend some time looking at the games in the Big Ten this week because frankly this is about football.

Michigan State at Iowa
How about this, we have two bowl eligible teams playing each other.  Michigan State stands at the top of the Legends division now.  Now the challenge is they have to beat Iowa at Iowa.  Michigan State hasn’t done that in the past 7 trips to Kinnick Stadium.  Don’t expect them to stop the skid this trip either.  Iowa has MSU’s number.  Iowa is playing well right now too.  Marcus Coker has scored two TDs in each of the last four games.  Marvin McNutt has now had three straight games with 100 yards receiving.  Iowa fans should enjoy this one as they find a way to create a first place tie for the Legends division.
Prediction:  Michigan State 23 Iowa 24 Read the rest of this entry →

What should have been a bland boring week of the favorites beating up the underdogs turned out to be upset weekend.  The Legends division now has one leader with losses by Michigan and Nebraska.  The Buckeyes and the Gophers seem to have found their offense and Wisconsin looks like they are back on track.

The next few weeks should be exciting as the race to Indy takes shape.  Will we see Penn State and Michigan State in the first Big Ten title game?  Or will Michigan State stumble now that they are in first place again to create a tie in the Legends division?  Wisconsin and Penn State meet on November 26 in Madison.  Before we look too far ahead though here is a recap of this weekends action.
Read the rest of this entry →