Capital One Bowl Preview

Penn State vs. LSU

When: Jan. 1 at 1 p.m. on ABC

Where: Orlando, Fla.

What to watch for: This one should be a really interesting match-up. The Tigers are one of the worst in the SEC in total offense and middle of the road in terms of total defense. On the other hand, the Nittany Lions rank second in the Big Ten in both total offense and defense. The key for this one will be if Penn State QB Daryll Clark is able to step up and win a big game - something he has been unable to do in the past.

Prediction: I like the Nittany Lions in this one. Joe Pa picks up his 24th b

owl win by beating the Mad Hatter Les Miles and his Tigers, 27-24.

VS.

(Photo Credits: bleacherreport.com)

10 Big Things about Week 5: Let's call it Juice Williams's swan song...

1. Juice benched: How the so-called mighty have fallen. The Big Ten preseason first-team QB has been benched in favor of junior Eddie Magee. Juice had an interception and a fumble in the loss to the Nittany Lions. I have to admit, I do have a slight bias, being that I am a big Juice hater (Williams that is - not the drink), but its a shame we won't see more of this the rest of the season.

(Photo Credit: ChicagoNow.com)

2. John Clay: The Badger running back makes his second appearance on 10 Big Things. He simply dominated, with 32 carries for 184 yards and three touchdowns in Wisconsin's win over the weekend.

3. Sparty back on track: Michigan State stepped it up when it was most needed with their overtime win against the Wolverines. One thing that is worrisome is the quarterback play, however. Kirk Cousins tossed two interceptions in regulation, which forced head coach Mark Dantonio to play backup Keith Nichol in overtime.

4. Tyler Sash: Honestly, this guy is just an interception machine. Sash picked off another one this past weekend, giving him five on the season. He's tied for first in the NCAA in interceptions and has seven INT's in his last eight games, dating back to last season.

5. Daryll Clark: The Nittany Lion signal-caller was solid this week, bouncing back after their home loss to Iowa. Clark completed 17 of 25 passes for 175 yards and also rushed for 83 yards and two touchdowns.

6. Boiler Butter Fingers: Purdue turned the ball over six times this weekend, five on fumbles and one on an interception. Purdue already has 17 turnovers this year and their -8 turnover margin is dead last in the Big Ten.

7. Marvin McNutt: McNutt had a career day at wide receiver on Saturday. The former Hawkeye third-string quarterback caught four passes for 121 yards and had a pair of touchdowns in the Hawkeye's win over Arkansas State.

8. Terelle Pryor: the Buckeye sophomore threw three touchdowns and ran for another in the Ohio State victory over Indiana

9. Northwestern mounts comeback over Purdue: Northwestern outscored Purdue 24-0 in the last 31 minutes of the game to defeat Purdue 27-21

10. Larry Caper: The Spartan RB had 13 carries for 39 yards, including the 23-yard game winning run in overtime to upset the Wolverines.

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