By Michael SchlossbergThe Daily Northwestern
No. 4 Michigan 17, Penn State 10
With all the attention on Michigan’s passing game following the injury of receiver Mario Manningham, Michigan’s defense stole the spotlight as Michigan came away with a 17-10 victory over Penn State (4-3, 2-2).
The Wolverines’ defense held Penn State to just 186 total yards for the game and knocked out Penn State’s first- and second-string quarterbacks with concussions.
Michigan (7-0, 4-0) limited Penn State’s Tony Hunt to just 33 yards rushing, 78 below his season average, and as a team, Penn State managed minus-14 yards on the ground.
“I knew it would be tough going in,” Penn State coach Joe Paterno said of Michigan’s defense. “Those kids are very active.”
With top-receiving weapon Manningham on the sidelines following arthroscopic-knee surgery, Michigan’s passing game appeared to struggle at times.
Quarterback Chad Henne completed just 15 of 30 passes for 196 yards and a touchdown.
Indiana 31, No. 15 Iowa 28
Going in as heavy underdogs, Indiana (4-3, 2-1) recorded its biggest win in nearly two decades.
Players stormed the field and fireworks started going off with 20 seconds left in the game as the Hoosiers began celebrating their stunning upset over No. 15 Iowa (5-2, 2-2) – the highest ranked team Indiana had beaten since No. 9 Ohio State in 1987.
After shaking hands with Iowa’s players, the Hoosiers sprinted toward the student section, with some even jumping into the crowd to sing the fight song with their fellow students.
“It’s a little crazy. I pretty much lost my voice on the field celebrating,” Indiana quarterback Kellen Lewis said. “It’s just fun right now.”
After falling down 21-7 in the first half, Indiana rallied for 17 straight points to take a 24-21 lead after three quarters. After an Iowa touchdown gave the Hawkeyes the lead, Lewis found receiver James Hardy in the end zone for a 20-yard touchdown pass, Hardy’s third of the game.
The win was Indiana’s second come-from-behind victory in as many weeks, as the Hoosiers erased an 18-point deficit to beat Illinois last week.
No. 25 Wisconsin 48, Minnesota 12
For the third straight year, Wisconsin (6-1, 3-1) claimed Paul Bunyan’s Axe, beating border-rival Minnesota (2-5, 0-4) 48-12.
Senior John Stocco threw four touchdowns passes in his final rivalry game against Minnesota.
“I know all the seniors feel the same way,” Stocco said. “Having that Axe stay here in our last go at them just feels great.”
Wisconsin wasted no time getting started, recovering a Minnesota fumble and returning it 50 yards for a touchdown less than two minutes into the game.
By halftime, the score was 28-3 and out of reach for Minnesota, who still remains winless in conference play.
“I told the players to put this all on my shoulders,” said Minnesota coach Glen Mason, now 2-8 against Wisconsin as the Gophers’ coach. “We didn’t play well offensively or defensively. I’ll take the responsibility.”
No. 1 Ohio State 38, Michigan State 7
Michigan State (3-4, 0-3) had upset Ohio State (7-0, 3-0) the last two times it played with Ohio State ranked No. 1, but there was no threat of a similar upset on Saturday. Ohio State cruised to a 38-7 victory as the Buckeyes’ extended their winning streak to 14 games, the longest in the nation.
“We were in control the entire game,” Ohio State linebacker James Laurinaitis said.
Quarterback Troy Smith, a Heisman Trophy frontrunner, did nothing to hurt his chances, completing 15 of 22 passes for 238 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
Perhaps the only disappointment for Ohio State was giving up a late touchdown with just more than one minute remaining, ruining its shutout bid.
Ohio 20, Illinois 17
For the third consecutive week, a field goal with just seconds remaining decided the outcome of an Illinois game. And Illinois (2-5, 1-2) has been on the wrong end the last two times.
With just five seconds, Ohio’s Matt Lasher kicked a 32-yard field goal to give Ohio the victory.
With the game tied at 17, Illinois started a drive with just less than two minutes remaining in the game, but a costly fumble gave Ohio the ball on the Illinois 16-yard line, setting up Lasher’s field goal.
Illinois lost 34-32 to Indiana last week and beat Michigan State 23-20 the week before.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Reach Michael Schlossberg at
Standings Big Ten OverallTeam Record Record Michigan 4-0 7-0 Ohio St. 3-0 7-0 Wisconsin 3-1 6-1 Purdue 2-1 5-2 Indiana 2-1 4-3 Iowa 2-2 5-2 Penn St. 2-2 4-3 Illinois 1-2 2-5 Michigan St. 0-3 3-4 NU 0-3 2-5 Minnesota 0-4 2-5Next Week’s Games Michigan St at NU Indiana at Ohio St. Wisconsin at Purdue Illinois at Penn St. Iowa at Michigan North Dakota St. at Minnesota
