Lets hand out some hardware...time for the Big Ten Awards

It's been one fantastic regular season of Big Ten football (I know it's not quite over yet, but it's close enought). It's time to hand out some awards. Who will walk away with the highest accolade given out by the media...the Football in the Heartland end of season awards!

Offensive Player of the Year - And the award goes to....Wisconsin running back John Clay. Clay ranks first in the Big Ten and 14th in the nation in rushing with 1,224 yards. His 13 touchdowns are also first in the Big Ten and put him in a tie for 14th in the country. He rushed for 100 yards or more seven times this season and had his best effort against Minnesota where he rushed for 184 yards and three touchdowns.(Photo credit: athlonsports.com)

Defensive Player of the Year - I'm going to give co-players of the year for this one. It's a pair of linebackers - Iowa's Pat Angerer and Michigan State's Greg Jones. Jones recorded 140 tackles (61 solo), as well as nine sacks. The 140 tackles is good for second in the country, while his nine sacks puts him in a tie for 13th. Angerer recorded 135 tackles (good for third in the nation), along with a sack, two forced fumbles, and an interception.

Coach of the Year - No brainer here, it's gotta be Hawkeye head man Kirk Ferentz. Ferentz led Iowa to it's first ever 9-0 start, ultimately finishing the season 10-2. The squad came from behind in eight of the 10 wins. Ferentz should be the National Coach of the Year, no question about it. Iowa doesn't get the five-star recruits like Florida, USC, etc. Ferentz gets the best out of his players and it showed this season.

(Photo Credit: bleacherreport.com)

Most disappointing team - Illinois. The Illini were poised for a big season with preseason All-Big Ten QB Juice Williams at the helm, but the Illini underachieved all season long.

Here's my first-team offense and defense...

OFFENSE

QB: Daryll Clark, PSU

RB: John Clay, Wis

WR: Eric Decker, Minn

WR: Blair White, MSU

WR: Keith Smith, Pur

TE: Tony Moeaki, Iowa

K: Brett Swenson, MSU

DEFENSE

DL: Adrian Clayborn, Iowa

DL: Ryan Kerrigan, Pur

DL: Jammie Kirlew, Ind

DL: Jared Odrick, PSU

LB: Pat Angerer, Iowa

LB: Greg Jones, MSU

LB: A.J. Edds, Iowa

DB: Tyler Sash, Iowa

DB: Kurt Coleman, OSU

P: Zoltan Mesko, Mich.

Best Plays from Week 11

Week 11 Picks

South Dakota State vs. Minnesota
Prediction: Although the Gophers are Decker-less right now. They will win this game and become bowl eligible. Minnesota 27, South Dakota State 10

Indiana vs. Penn State
Prediction: The Lions may not be able to smell the roses, but they're certainly going to keep playing hard and try to make another BCS bowl. Season's over for Bill Lynch and the Hoosiers as the Lions roll, 35-7.

Michigan vs. Wisconsin
Prediction: This is a HUGE game for Rich Rod. A must-win since they play Ohio State next week. That being said, I think Bielema and Tolzien will win this one. Wolverines miss out on a bowl for the second-straight year as the Badgers jump around to the tune of a 24-14 victory.

Michigan State vs. Purdue
Prediction: I never would have thought that Purdue would be two wins away from bowl eligibility. Honestly, I think the Boilers have this one in the bag. Sparty has struggle since losing to Iowa and is coming off an easy win over a MAC opponent. I don't think they will be ready for Danny Hope and the Boilers. Purdue wins it, 21-17.

Northwestern vs. Illinois
Prediction: Northwestern is coming off a huge win at Iowa and I think they will continue to build off of that win when they head to Champaign. Pat Fitzgerald and his squad get it done for a second-straight week, beating the fighting Zooks, 17-14.

Iowa vs. Ohio State
Prediction: It's a game for all the roses. James Vandenberg is going to have to shoulder the load for the Hawkeye offense and not make mistakes. Call me biases, call me a homer, I honestly believe Iowa will win this game. It's going to be a low-scoring defensive effort and the Hawks are going to rally around their young QB. Iowa wins in a close one, 10-7.

Week 10 Picks

Northwestern vs. Iowa
Prediction: The Wildcats are tough at Kinnick and Mike Kafka is back at QB, but I still like the Hawkeyes to win this one, 31-17

Wisconsin vs. Indiana
Prediction: Indiana has blown its past two games. They won't win this one either, Badgers jump around, 35-13

Western Michigan vs. Michigan State
Prediction: Michigan State needs a game like this to get them back on track. Kirk Cousins and Blair White both have big games as Sparty rolls, 40-7

Purdue vs. Michigan
Prediction: Boilers aren't losing hope, but they will lose this game as Rich Rod rights the Wolverine ship. 30-21

Illinois vs. Minnesota
Prediction: Brewster and the Gophers will be bowl eligible after this one. Minnesota beats Illinois, 23-14

Ohio State vs. Penn State
Prediction: Daryll Clark finally wins a big game. Joe Pa and the Lions celebrate with big 27-24 victory

Week 9 Picks

New Mexico State vs. Ohio State
Prediction: I think non-conference games in week nine are silly. Ohio State wins this one with strong QB play by Pryor, 40-10

Indiana vs. Iowa
Prediction: Hawkeye running back Adam Robinson is out and the Hawkeyes are 17.5 point favorites. I'm going with the Hawkeyes to keep their streak going, but I don't think they will cover the spread. Iowa wins it, 24-13

Purdue vs. Wisconsin
Prediction: Purdue really seems to be finding its stride this year, but Camp Randall is definitely a tough spot for them to play. That being said, I like the Boilermakers in this game. QB Joey Elliott, RB Ralph Bolden, and WR Aaron Valentin will all have solid games and a Carson Wiggs field goal will be the difference. Boiler Up, 27-24

Michigan at Illinois
Prediction: The only thing that is worse than the swine flu is the Fighting Illness. Michigan wins it and Juice will throw at least two picks and get sacked four times. Wolverines win it, 36-10.

Penn State vs. Northwestern
Prediction: The Lions are simply have more talent than the Wildcats. Daryll Clark will have a big game and the Nittany Lions will roll, 24-9.

Michigan State vs. Minnesota
Prediction: An Eric Decker-less Gopher team is definitely going to struggle the final four weeks of the season. Michigan State needs this one to rebound from that heart-breaking loss to the Hawkeyes last weekend. I think that Sparty will do just that, winning this game 28-10

Big Plays from Week 8

Week 8 Picks

Illinois vs. Purdue
Prediction: Boilers get their first win streak of the season, knocking off the Illness 24-20

Indiana vs. Northwestern
Prediction: Hoosiers win in a big game for bowl implications. IU wins 20-17

Minnesota vs. Ohio State
Prediction: Buckeyes get back on track and defeat Eric Decker and the Gophers, 30-14

Penn State vs. Michigan
Prediction: Penn State takes down Forcier and the Wolverines in a close one, 27-24

Iowa vs. Michigan State
Prediction: Hawkeyes win in East Lansing for first time since 1995, but once again, it's going to be a close one. 21-20.

Stay off the Grass!

A brief message to fellow Hawkeye fans: When will you learn?

Once again, in front of the bright lights of ABC’s national audience, thousands of Iowa students poured over the stands and onto to the field to celebrate the 30-28 Homecoming victory over Michigan.

Are you kidding me?

There was absolutely no fathomable reason at all that Iowa fans should have stormed the field.

Let me remind you that the undefeated, then 12^th-ranked Hawkeyes were favored against the unranked Wolverines. But being favored hasn’t stopped fans in the past. I can recall in 2007 when a number of fans stormed historic Kinnick Stadium after a five-point victory against Minnesota.

Great, we won the Floyd of Rosedale, but here’s the catch. Minnesota had one win the entire season!

I understand that it’s exciting that the Hawkeyes are 7-0 for the first time since before most students we’re born and that the game was nationally televised , but if Iowa is going to be taken seriously as the No. 7 team in the country (No. 6 in the BCS) and as a Big Ten title contender, fans need to act like we’ve been here before. Storming the field every time Iowa wins a game is utterly unacceptable.

Storming the field makes our fans and our team look like we don’t compare to the upper-tier teams in the Big Ten and in other major conferences. It gives off the impression that we as fans weren’t expecting the win the game.

Think about how many times fans of USC, Florida, or Texas have stormed the field. Storming the field is meant for teams like Rutgers, Temple, Iowa State (gasp), and Florida International.

Let’s be associated with the former and not the latter.

So here you go Hawkeye fans, here’s the proper field storming etiquette. When you’re thinking about heading down to the turf, revert back to these three rules.

If it doesn’t fall under one of these categories, stay in the stands.

1) If you’re an underdog: Case and point the Penn State game in 2008. It’s fine to storm the field when you’re team is unranked and they knock off the No. 3 team in the country.

2) Last second victories: This one needs a little bit of explaining. This is for game winning plays against teams of equal or greater playing field. No storming the field when it takes an unprecedented play to save us from a major upset – i.e. Northern Iowa (at least we did that one right).

3) Capping off a historic season: In 2002-2003, Iowa went into its final home game with a record of 9-1, competing for a spot in BCS. In the final home game, Iowa defeated Northwestern 62-10, and fans poured onto the field to celebrate with the team that eventually earned a bid to the Orange Bowl. If the Hawkeyes are undefeated or even a one-loss team heading into the final home game (knock on wood), feel free to join Pat Angerer, Ricky Stanzi, and Adrian Clayborn on the turf to celebrate the magnificent season.

If we want to be taken seriously as a year-in, year-out contender and not just a one-hit wonder, keep it in the stands fans, keep it in the stands.

Big Plays from Week 7

This is a new weekly segment where I will compile a 60 second video clip of some of my favorite plays from around the Big Ten each week. I'm able to do this thanks to Big Ten Network's video mashup. It's a great feature that they offer on their site.

Time for Week 7 Picks

Another installment of pick'em. Now that I'm in a self-described "Pick'em War" against ESPN Blogger Adam Rittenberg, I'll post his picks for you as well. But first, here's my picks

Deleware State vs. Michigan
Game Time: 11 a.m. on Big Ten Network
What to watch for: Should be an easy game for Michigan to get themselves back on track, let's see how Tate Forcier plays after being roughed up by the Hawkeyes (and after being yelled at a lot by Rich Rod).
Prediction: Wolverines roll 38-10
Rittenberg's Pick: Michigan

Iowa vs. Wisconsin
Game Time: 11 a.m. on ESPN
What to watch for: It's the battle for the Heartland Trophy. The Hawkeyes hit the road for the next two weeks to see if they can continue their undefeated season.
Prediction: Stanzi plays better, Hawkeyes win in a close one, 24-21
Rittenberg's Pick: Wisconsin

Northwestern vs. Michigan State
Game Time: 11 a.m. on ESPN2
What to watch for: Michigan State's QB play and how the Sparty defense plays against the Mike Kafka offense.
Prediction: In a slight upset, I'll take the Wildcats, 27-24
Rittenberg's Pick: Michigan State

Ohio State vs. Purdue
Game Time: 11 a.m. on Big Ten Network
What to watch for: Let's see if Purdue can even compete in this game
Prediction: Purdue has, what I would say is a 0% chance of winning, and I think I'm being generous. Buckeyes crush the Boilers, 40-7
Rittenberg's Pick: Ohio State

Minnesota vs. Penn State
Game time: 2:30 p.m. on ABC
What to watch for: If the Gophers have any chance, Adam Weber and Eric Decker need to have damn good games.
Prediction: Penn State keeps it going, winning this one 30-13
Rittenberg's Pick: Penn State

Illinois vs. Indiana
Game Time: 6 p.m. on Big Ten Network
What to watch for: Battle of some bottom feeders. Illinois needs to limit the turnovers if they wi this game (Good luck with Juice and Magee at QB).
Prediction: Indiana will pull of the upset in this one, and the Fighting Illness will prepare fireronzook.com. Hoosiers win 17-14
Rittenberg's Pick: Illinois

So as you can see, this is a BIG week for me to either jump ahead of Adam Rittenberg or for him to catch up to me. Only time will tell. Let's just sit back and watch some Big Ten Football

COME TO PENN STATE!!!

I'm sure you've all seen it. But I just had to get this video up on the blog. Everytime there is a mention of Joe Paterno, the first thing I hear is "COOOOMME TO PENN STATE!!!!! If I were a recruit, that's all I would need to sign my letter of intent.

The BIG Ten Video of the Week

Time for a another new middle of the week feature that I'd like to call the BIG TEN VIDEO OF THE WEEK!

Each week, I'll scour the internet in search of the best, craziest, hilarious, and occasionally insightful videos from the Big Ten within the past week. This one comes from right in my backyard, historic Kinnick Stadium, from last week's game against Arkansas State. I'm not sure what this guy was thinking, but he did get the crowds attention with his dazzling moves.

BTOC: Week 5

1. Ohio State Buckeyes (4-1)

2. Iowa Hawkeyes (5-0)

3. Penn State Nittany Lions (4-1)

4. Wisconsin Badgers (5-0)

5. Michigan Wolverines (4-1)

6. Minnesota Golden Gophers (3-2)

7. Northwestern Wildcats (3-2)

8. Michigan State Spartans (2-3)

9. Indiana Hoosiers (3-2)

10. Illinois Illini (1-3)

11. Purdue Boilermakers (1-4)

One Quick Note...

Hey all, I'm still recovering from that incredible win by the Hawkeyes last night.

But I just have one quick note.

I'll be back with the next installment of 10 Big Things and Tweets around the Big Ten tomorrow, but I did want to point out one quick thing...

Check out my pick'em record right now, over on the left side in the Big Ten Standings section.

I'm currently 31-7. Just below that is the pick'em record for ESPN Big Ten blogger Adam Rittenberg.

Just wanted to point out that I have a four game lead at picking games on a guy that works for ESPN, just saying...

That's all for now because its time for some booklearning, time to stop slacking off at the library and time to get some work done.

10 Big Things from week 2

It's time for the second installment of 10 big things from the Big Ten. This week was another extremely exciting week, full of close games, big plays, and even an upset. After going 10-1 in week one, the Big Ten struggled slightly this week going 8-3, but it could have been much worse. So without further ado, lets take a look at those 10 things...

10. Eric Decker: The Gopher wideout had 10 catches for 113 yards on Saturdays win against Air Force. The senior is second in the NCAA in receptions with 19 and third in the NCAA in receiving yards with 296.

9. Gophers christen new stadium with a win: Minnesota's first game in sold-out TCF Bank stadium was a victory over the Air Force Falcons, 20-13. The Gophers played outdoors and on the campus for the first time in 27 years.

8. USC vs. Big Ten teams: I feel like I'm beating a dead (trojan) horse when I say this, but just in case you've been living under a rock for the past couple of years, USC has absolutely dominated Big Ten opponents. The Trojans are 10-0 in their last 10 games against Big Ten teams, nine of those wins are by double-digits. Pete Carroll is a pretty good coach, enough said.

7. Iowa RB's: After a pretty dismal efford against FCS opponent Northern Iowa, the Hawkeye rushers came to play against the Cyclones of Iowa State. The Hawkeyes may have found a new starting running back in freshman Brandon Wegher, who ran for 101 yards and a touchdown. Adam Robinson added another 69 yards as the Hawks rushed for a total of 191 yards. Not great, but getting better.

6. Purdue's PAT struggles: Purdue had a PAT blocked at the beginning of the 4th quarter that would have tied the game at 31-31. That missed PAT came back to haunt them when they scored with one minute to play in the game. Forced to go for two, Kyle Adams caught quarterback Joey Elliott's pass, unfortunately he caught it out of bounds and the Boilers lost 38-36.

5. Michigan in the Top 25: The Wolverines are in the top 25 for the first time in Rich Rod's tenure at UM after knocking off the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame on Saturday.

4. Ralph Bolden (right): Purdue's new running back showed that he certainly wasn't a one-hit wonder after rushing for 234 yards against Toledo in week 1. The sophomore ran for 123 yards and two touchdowns against a much tougher Oregon team, and currently leads the NCAA in rushing yards with 357. The Sporting News Dave Curtis wrote a bio about Bolden earlier last week.

Photo credit: www.sportingnews.com

3. Tyler Sash: The Hawkeye safety had three picks and a forced fumble against in-state rial Iowa State, earning him Big Ten co-defensive player of the week. The sophomore has five interceptions in his last five games, dating back to last season, including a crucial interception against last year against Penn State.

2. Big Ten vs. MAC: For some reason, the Big Ten continues to struggle against the Mid-American Conference. Michigan State lost to Central Michigan, Northwestern and Indiana barely snuck by Eastern Michigan and Western Michigan, respectively, and in week one Wisconsin nearly blew it at home against Northern Illinois. I don't know if the Big Ten teams overlook these squads or play down to their level or what, but they should be beating them by a lot more than three points and certainly should not be losing to these teams.

1. Tate Forcier (below): The freshman had an outstanding game for the Wolverines, leading them to victory over the 18th ranked Fighting Irish. The freshman signal caller threw for 240 yards and two touchdowns, earning him Big Ten co-offensive player of the week.

Photo Credit: www.mlive.com

Star Hawkeye O-lineman out for Cy-Hawk game this weekend. Plus other Big Ten nuggets

Iowa offensive lineman Bryan Bulaga (right, #79) will miss this weekends game at Iowa State due to a mysterious ailment or illness.

Twitter and several message boards were buzzing yesterday with rumors of the ailment. The rumors ranged from an ailment that would keep him out this week to a condition that could possibly be career-threatening.

But hold the phone, here's what we know so far. ESPN blogger Adam Rittenberg reports that he will miss the Iowa State game.

"Bryan Bulaga was hospitalized with an illness this past week and will not be available to play [Saturday]," Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said in a statement. "Bryan is doing much better, has been released and will accompany the team this weekend. We expect Bryan to return to his normal activities soon."

The junior O-lineman earned second team All-Big Ten honors last season and was voted as a preseason second team all-american by Phil Steele's College Football. He is considered to be a legitimate NFL prospect and Sports Illustrated predicted Bulaga to be an All-American this season in their College Football Preview edition.

(Photo Credit: www.nationalchamps.net)


Other Big Ten nuggets...

-Mark Snyder of the Detroit Free press writes that Rich Rod and Jim Tressel will be rooting for each other this weekend
-Mike Carmin of the Indiapolis Star writes about the energy that new Boiler coach Danny Hope brings to Purdue.
-ESPN blogger Adam Rittenberg writes about the wild atmosphere the Hawkeyes will face in Ames, IA when they take on the Cyclones this weekend.
-Herb Gould of the Chicago Sun-Times writes about how Big Ten pride hangs on the shoulders of Ohio State this weekend.

Big Weekend for Big Ten: My Week 2 Picks for the 11 a.m. games

It's time for another week of picks. Last week the Big Ten went 10-1 and I went 11-0 with my picks. I plan to stay undefeated this week with my picks, but if I do, then the Big Ten certainly will not have a 10-1 record this week. Lets take a look at the games...

Western Michigan (0-1) vs. Indiana (1-0)
Game Time: 11 a.m. on the Big Ten Network
Who to watch For: Western Michigan QB Tim Hiller completed 22 passes for 259 yards against Michigan last week, throwing one touchdown and two interceptions. Hiller ranks 13th all time in MAC history in career passing yards and 6th in career passing touchdowns.
Prediction: Indiana will pick up win number two, which is good because wins are going to be hard to come by for the Hoosiers as the season progresses. Indiana 17, Western Michigan 10

Central Michigan (0-1) vs. Michigan St. (1-0)
Game Time: 11 a.m. on ESPN2
Who to watch for: CMU QB Dan LeFevour has passed for 9,575 yards, thrown 74 touchdowns, and rushed for 2,253 in his career as a Chippewa.
Prediction: Michigan St. will continue to use both Kirk Cousins and Keith Nichol at QB, and the MSU defense will be too much for the Chippewas. Michigan State 30, Central Michigan 14

Eastern Michigan (0-1) vs. Northwestern (1-0)
Game Time: 11 a.m. on the Big Ten Network
Who to watch for: Northwestern's Corey Wootton is on the watch list for several defensive awards this season. The defensive end only played a quarter in week 1 vs. Towson after sitting out much of spring practice nursing the Torn ACL he suffered in the Alamo Bowl last season. Look to see if he gets more time this weekend.
Prediction: Wildcats QB Mike Kafka has a big day and Northwestern trounces EMU, 40-10.

Syracuse (0-1) vs. Penn St (1-0)
Game Time: 11 a.m. on the Big Ten Network
Who to watch for: Daryll Clark and Greg Paulus. Look for Clark to have another big day at QB for the Lions, but I expect Paulus to have a pretty good game in his second career start with the Orange.
Prediction: This will be a close game for one or two quarters, but the Lions pull away in the second half. Penn State 37, Syracuse 17.

Iowa (1-0) vs. Iowa State (1-0)
Game Time: 11 a.m. on FSN (Mediacom in Iowa)
Who to watch for: Derrell Johnson-Koulianos was almost non-existent in Iowa's near stumble against FCS foe Northern Iowa. Last year, "DJK" was one of Ricky Stanzi's go-to receivers, having 44 catches for 639 yards. But last week, he made only one catch for 22 yards and only saw the field for a couple of plays.
Prediction: First Rivalry game of the season, the Battle for the Cy-Hawk Trophy. Although the Hawkeyes never seem to play well at Iowa State, I see Iowa winning a close one to get them to 2-0. Hawkeyes win this one 24-17.

Fresno State (1-0) vs. Wisconsin (1-0)
Game Time: 11 a.m. on ESPN
Who to watch for: Fresno State running back Ryan Matthews ran for 106 yards last week against UC-Davis. The junior has run for over 1,500 yards in his career.
Prediction: *UPSET ALERT* Wisconsin almost blew it last week at home against Northern Illinois, look for Fresno State to pull off the upset at Camp Randall this week. Fresno State wins it on the road, 36-27

The Big Ten's newest venue: TCF Bank Stadium

Football was meant to be played outside, simple as that.

The Gophers will kick off their home schedule this weekend against Air Force at brand new TCF Bank Stadium. For the first time since 1981, they will play an outdoor home game on the Minnesota Campus rather than in the H.H.H. Metrodome. Construction on the $288.5 million stadium began in July 2007 and was finished in July 2009.

The stadium holds 50,805 people, has the third largest outdoor scoreboard in college football, and boasts the largest locker room in all of college and professional football (the locker room is also in the shape of a football).

This stadium looks absolutely awesome, it's great to see the Gophers out of that terrible Metrodome (no offense Viking or Twins fans) and back on the Minnesota campus and outdoors.

"It's a place we can finally call home," Gopher wideout Eric Decker told ESPN blogger Adam Rittenberg.

Take the virtual tour of the stadium at http://stadium.gophersports.com/index.html

Stadium photo credit: www.gophersports.com

Big Ten News and Notes: Top 25, QB's in Michigan, Flu Bug at Wisconsin, and another Blue Devil Baller at Quarterback?

-The week 1 polls are out, and only two Big Ten squads are in the USA Today Top 25. Penn State jumped up three spots to #5, and Ohio State dropped one spot down to #7. Iowa, who was previously ranked #21, fell out of the top 25 after nearly losing to FCS opponent Northern Iowa. Other Big Ten teams receiving votes included Michigan State (133 votes), Iowa (70), Northwestern (4), Michigan (4), and Minnesota (1)

-Rich Rod named freshman Tate Forcier his starting QB for Saturday's contest against the Fighting Irish. Forcier threw three touchdowns before halftime on Saturday.

-Also in the state of Michigan, Sparty head man Mark Dantonio has yet to decide whether Kirk Cousins or Keith Nichol will start against Central Michigan. Both looked really good against Montana State

-The Wisconsin Badger football team has been hit with the flu-bug. According to numerous sources, including ESPN Big Ten Blogger Adam Rittenberg and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, at least 10 members of the football team have come down with flu like symptoms. However, there is speculation that the number is much higher. There is no knowledge as to whether the players are suffering from the H1N1 virus (or swine flu). "We had a challenging tuesday with the flu bug hitting our team the last few days but they responded well," coach Brett Bielama said on his twitter page. "We are on road to recovery."

-ESPN.com's Pat Forde wrote an funny piece today about the "Thank You Notes" that Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany should send out this week.

-Lastly, I leave you with a tweet from the Big Ten Network's Mike Hall (@BTNMikeHall): "Actually just got breaking news, turns out Air Force is debating starting either Wojo or Chris Duhon at QB against The Gophers this week"

Personally, I'd like to see J.J. Redick get the nod at QB over Wojo or Duhon

10 Big Things about Week 1

It's time for a weekly segment that I like to call 10 Big Things. The name pretty much explains itself, I will post the 10 biggest things that occurred in the Big Ten each week, whether it be a great performance, a big injury, a coaching decision or the mistake that cost a team the game. Here's what we've got this week.

10.) Wisconsin at home: The Badgers nearly gave the game away to NIU late at Camp Randall. Leading 28-6 going into the 4th quarter, they gave up two touchdowns and a two-point conversion to cut the lead to only eight. The Badgers even allowed the Huskies to recover an onside kick but failed to convert on a late 4th down. This is not a good start for the Badgers when it comes to finishing a game.

9) Danny Hope (right): The new Boilermaker head honcho picked up his first win on Saturday against Toledo. The new coach, who's still rockin' a Joe Tiller-esque mustache, served as assistant coach for the Boilers last year. Ironically, Tiller also faced off against the Rockets in his first game as head coach back in 1997, but was on the losing end.

(Hope photo credit: http://images.athlonsports.com/d/16726-1/DannyHope.jpg)

8.) Carson Wiggs: The Purdue kicker set a school record with a 59-yard field goal. That's a damn long kick

7.) Michigan State Defense: Granted they were playing Montana State, but the Sparty D only allowed 160 total yards. Big Ten Preseason Defensive Player of the Year Greg Jones led MSU with 14 tackles and 1.5 sacks.

6.) Iowa Running Game: Without the injured Jewel Hampton and the NFL bound Shonn Greene, Iowa's running game was mediocre at best. The Hawkeye backs rushed for 123 yards, but 28 yards came from a reverse to wideout Paul Chaney Jr.

5.) QB's in the state of Michigan: It was a good day to be a QB for the Wolverines and the Spartans. Michigan State starting QB Kirk Cousins threw three touchdowns and went 10-17 for 183 yards. Backup Keith Nichol also looked good, going 9 for 18 and throwing two touchdowns. Wolverine starter Tate Forcier tossed two touchdowns and backup Denard Robinson ran for 74 yards, including a 43 yard touchdown run.

4.) Ralph Bolden: Boiler up! The sophomore dashed for 234 yards, the third best in school history for a back making his first career start, scoring two touchdowns and leading the Boilers to victory over Toledo.

3.) Daryll Clark (right): In my opinion, the best passing quarterback in the Big Ten. It's a travesty that this guy was voted the 3rd Team QB in the preseason Big Ten voting, but that's another story. The Nittany Lion captain completed 72.5% of his passes, throwing for a Big Ten leading 353 yards and three TD's.

(Clark Photo Credit: http://assets.espn.go.com/photo/2009/0408/ncf_g_clark_576.jpg)

2.) Brian Rolle: The Buckeye CB put the dagger into the heart of the Midshipmen on Saturday when he intercepted the two-point conversion attempt and took it to the house, giving OSU a four point lead and the win.

1.) Iowa Special Teams: It's damn near impossible to block a field goal two times in a row, but the Hawkeye special teams came through in a clutch situation. When all hope was seemingly lost (and I know that this Hawkeye fan was certainly worried), Broderick Binns and Jerimiha Hunter came up huge, getting their big mitts up there to save the day and keep UNI from pulling off a big upset.