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Big Ten Conference Season Comes to A Close on Saturday
Nov. 18, 2005
Minnesota (7-3, 4-3 Big Ten) @ Iowa (6-4, 4-3 Big Ten) A Minnesota and Iowa matchup on Saturday features two teams who won big last week, with Minnesota beating Michigan State, 41-18, at home and Iowa spoiling Wisconsin's day with a 20-10 upset over the Badgers. The two teams enter Saturday's game with identical Big Ten records, and are both eligible for a post-season bowl game. Minnesota's powerful running game ranks first in the country, and with Amir Pinnix earning Player of the Week honors for his 206 yards against Michigan State, three different Gopher running backs have garnered Big Ten weekly honors this season. Laurence Maroney, though sidelined with an injury during last week's game, still remains at the top of the Big Ten in rushing with 1,345 yards, and is expected to return to Saturday's lineup. In the Hawkeyes' win over Wisconsin, they overcame a 10-0 deficit behind the arm of quarterback Drew Tate, who had 224 yards and two touchdowns. Defensively, Iowa stifled its opponent, allowing only 94 second-half yards, and had a stretch of forcing eight consecutive punts. For his two sacks in the game, freshman defensive tackle Mitch King earned Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week accolades. The two teams will be battling for the Floyd of Rosedale bronze pig trophy for the 71st time since 1935. Iowa has held the trophy for the past four years, winning each of the last four game including last season's 29-27 contest in Minneapolis. The regular season finale for both teams will be broadcast on ESPN2 and will kick off at 11:00 a.m. Northwestern (6-4, 4-3 Big Ten) @ Illinois (2-8, 0-7 Big Ten) Northwestern head coach Randy Walker and Illinois head coach Ron Zook were teammates and classmates at Miami, Ohio, but the two will be on opposite sidelines on Saturday for the first time. Illini quarterback Tim Brasic will again be at the helm this weekend, and leads the team in rushing on the season. In addition to Brasic, Pierre Thomas is averaging 6.7 yards per carry, and will be relied upon heavily to counter Northwestern's explosive offense. Thomas and fellow running back E.B. Halsey are also Brasic's favorite targets, as Halsey is leading the team with 35 catches. As a unit, the Illini offense is averaging 346 yards per game. The Wildcats will be looking to rebound from a difficult loss at Ohio State last weekend, their first road-loss of the season. Northwestern's offense, behind quarterback Brett Basanez, has amassed over 3,000 yards already in 2005, had gone 10 consecutive games with over 400 yards until the Buckeyes ended that streak. The defensive side of the ball is lead by senior Tim McGarigle, who builds on his school record of 500 career tackles. The two in-state rivals will be competing for possession of the Sweet Sioux Tomahawk trophy. The Illini hold a 32-26-2 series lead, but Northwestern has won each of the last two games. The battle can be seen live on ESPN Plus at 11:00 a.m. from Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Ill.
It will be a clash of intrastate rivals on Saturday when Purdue makes the short drive to Bloomington to take on Indiana for both teams' season finale. The Boilermakers have won each of their last two games, and hope to end their season on the winning track. Joe Tiller and the Purdue offense put up 37 points in last week's win against Illinois, and in doing so had almost 400 yards of total offense. Quarterback Curtis Painter had over 200 yards in the air, and added 57 more on the ground to lead the way for the Boilermakers. Jerod Void ran for over 100 yards of his own, while Dorien Bryant had 90 receiving yards. Defensively, Purdue allowed just 97 yards in the air to the Illini, and allowed only three points. Hoosier quarterback Blake Powers has already shattered the school record for passing touchdowns in a single season with 22, and will be looking to add to that number in the last game of his sophomore season. Indiana had their hands full last weekend when they traveled to No. 21 Michigan, but Kyle Killion, Will Meyers and Leslie Majors each recorded 10 or more tackles in the game, and held the Wolverines scoreless throughout the entire second half. The two squads will be playing for possession of the Old Oaken Bucket trophy, which has been a part of the rivalry for 80 years. The Boilermakers have held the trophy for the past three seasons. The game, which kicks off at 1:00 p.m. in Bloomington, can be followed live on ESPN 360.
As frequently seems to be the case when the two teams meet, a potential Big Ten title is on the line when Ohio State heads to Michigan this weekend. An Ohio State win would guarantee the Buckeyes at least a share of the Big Ten title, while a Michigan win coupled with a Penn State loss would clinch a piece of the title for the Wolverines. Ohio State has a five-game winning streak entering the weekend, and has scored at least 35 points in each of those wins. Last weekend, when the Buckeyes hosted Northwestern, they overcame an early 7-0 deficit by scoring 48 unanswered points for the win. Quarterback Troy Smith had a pair of touchdowns in the first quarter, which were two of Ohio State's five rushing touchdowns on the day. Linebacker A.J. Hawk also ran in for a score after a blocked punt, and Josh Huston added two field goals. Tailback Antonio Pittman led all runners with 132 yards last Saturday. Michigan's offense was busy as well, racking up 41 points on the Indiana defense. Michigan dominated all day as quarterback Chad Henne threw for three touchdowns last weekend, and Kevin Grady ran in for a pair. The Wolverines are also entering the game with a win streak of their own, having won their last four straight. The two teams have met every year for the past 88 years, creating one of the biggest rivalries in all sports. Over the past 50 years, the series is evenly split, 24-24-2. The 102nd game between the two teams can be seen on ABC Sports at 1:00 p.m. from Ann Arbor. No. 5 Penn State (9-1, 6-1 Big Ten) @ Michigan State (5-5, 2-5 Big Ten) The Nittany Lions travel to Michigan State this week, hoping to clinch a Big Ten title, while the Spartans will try to play spoiler on its Senior Day and become bowl-eligible. A Penn State win or Ohio State loss will clinch at least a share of the 2005 Big Ten Championship for the Nittany Lions. A Penn State win, coupled with an Ohio State loss, would make the Nittany Lions the sole champions. Lion tailback Tony Hunt enters the game just 42 yards shy of 1,000 while quarterback teammate Michael Robinson needs just eight yards to reach 2,000 on the season. Defensively, the Lions' front line is among the nations best, and has compiled 36 sacks, with Tamba Hali leading the way with 11, and Matthew Rice contributing five. Michigan State quarterback Drew Stanton tied the school record for touchdown passes in a season with 21 in last week's loss to Minnesota. He also ranks ninth in the nation in total offense with over 340 yards per game on his own, and leads an offense who ranks at the top of the Big Ten with 507 yards per game overall. Five of his receivers have 27 or more catches on the year. Saturday's game will mark the 23rd all time meeting between Michigan State and Penn State, and the 16th edition of the battle for the Land-Grant Trophy. The trophy is in recognition of the two schools being the first land-grant schools in the nation, as both were founded in 1855. The last time the two teams met at Spartan Stadium in 2003, Michigan State came away with the 41-10 win. Saturday's battle will kick off at 4:00 p.m. from East Lansing, and can be seen live on ESPN.
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