It was a rather uneventful Week 8 for the Big Ten. Ohio State and Michigan State both kept their undefeated records intact, Penn State edged past Maryland and Bart Houston laid the foundation for his 2016 Heisman campaign by helping Wisconsin best Illinois.
1. Houston to the rescue
Football is a team sport, but sometimes one player can have a game-changing impact on their team.
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – When redshirt junior quarterback Joel Stave left the game with a head injury late in the first quarter, redshirt junior Bart Houston was thrust into an uncomfortable spot.
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - “It’s the next man up.” This quote has been uttered by head coach Paul Chryst, offensive coordinator Joe Rudolph, redshirt senior quarterback Joel Stave and on Saturday night in Champaign, Ill., redshirt junior quarterback Bart Houston was the next man up to say the phrase. Late in the first quarter of Wisconsin’s (3-1 Big Ten, 6-2 Overall) 24-13 win over Illinois (1-2, 4-3), Stave was sacked by junior defensive end Carroll Phillips, who beat redshirt senior left tackle Tyler Marz to the inside.
While the Big Ten East continues to dazzle, as the Michigan-Michigan State matchup may go down as the best game in the entire FBS this year and Ohio State has finally found a way to maximize the Braxton Miller-Cardale Jones- J.T.
When people think of the Big Ten, the first image that comes to mind is usually three yards and a cloud of dust, a byproduct of ground-and-pound running offenses.
After living under the sunny skies of California, wide receivers coach Ted Gilmore and his family have traded in their swimsuits for stocking caps. He even joked about his son wearing a winter hat to school when the temperature dipped into the 40s.
No. 5 LSU might be the only team in the country that can say it has been as impressive as No. 2 Baylor. A fifth straight convincing win has the Tigers at their highest ranking since 2012, but they couldn’t be playing a more different style from that team.
In a season plagued with injuries, the Badgers seemingly suffered their worst loss with the announcement that highly touted starting junior running back Corey Clement would miss significant time after surgery to repair a lingering sports hernia injury. To compound the damage, redshirt freshman running back Taiwan Deal suffered an ankle injury in UW’s comeback win at Nebraska.
No. 17 Iowa made a statement Saturday afternoon when it rolled through No. 20 Northwestern by a score of 40-10, putting it in control of its own destiny in the Big Ten West.
Michigan State-Michigan. That is all.
1. Stave’s roller coaster ride
Defensive coordinator Dave Aranda self-admittedly has a difficult time talking about what his defense does well.
Many of the Badger faithful expected Wisconsin (2-1 Big Ten, 5-2 overall) to roll over a weak Purdue team (0-3, 1-6). While it wasn’t as lopsided as expected in the beginning, UW defeated the Boilermakers by a respectable 24-7 score.
After a thrilling and much-needed win against the Nebraska Cornhuskers, the Badgers return home next week to face the Purdue Boilermakers.
One week after Iowa traveled to Camp Randall Stadium and upset the Badgers in a close game, they looked to solidify their position as one of the favorites to win the Big Ten West with a win over Illinois. Coming in as 10-point favorites, many expected Iowa to command the game from the start.
Bouncing back from a tough week against Iowa, redshirt senior Joel Stave earned the title of MVP this week by leading the Badgers on not one, but two game-winning drives.
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