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Penn State (8-1, 5-0) #12 AP/Coaches

As the Penn State Nittany Lions head into the homestretch of the season, they bear perhaps the most pressure of any team in the conference. Partially because of their standing atop the B1G Leaders division (they remain the lone undefeated team) but also because of the controversy surrounding the program thanks to charges against former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky.

It will be interesting to see if Penn State is capable of keeping their quality of play at the same level that brought them to this current position. Joe Paterno was made unavailable to the weekly B1G conference call (and has since been relieved from his head coaching position) but one has to believe that the viewpoint of the Nittany Lions’ senior leadership will remain the same: they’re looking to perform to the best of their ability and aren’t willing to let anything get in their way.

It’s fair to wonder what could be running through the minds of the seniors on the Penn State squad, but one thing is for certain – that there is no quit in this team. There have been naysayers every step of the way and the team’s approach will likely remain the same. Penn State currently enjoys a lead in the division and in turn enjoys an inside track to the conference championship game.

The rest of the season will certainly be a challenge, but no more of a challenge than the last few days have been. It’s not going to be easy by any stretch, but Penn State has beaten the odds to this point of the year and currently has the same opportunity to do so. While it would be understandable if they fail to do so, it would be foolish to count them out at this point.

Ohio State (6-3, 3-2) receiving votes

While Luke Fickell’s Ohio State Buckeyes may be unfamiliar with their current position in the B1G race – on the outside looking in – circumstances may be favorable for Ohio State, considering the recent developments at Penn State

The Buckeyes are coming off of a close loss to the Indiana Hoosiers and while they were able to secure a victory, Ohio State coach Luke Fickell wasn’t thrilled with the manner of the victory.

“Our guys hadn’t had a noon game in awhile,” he said. “And we didn’t handle it great last week, so hopefully we can get back into the swing of things and get up and play instead of waiting around all day.”

As Fickell alluded to, the game against Indiana came early in the day, and this week’s game against Purdue will as well. To add to the Buckeye’s challenge, Purdue (this week’s opponent) has had a measure of success against Ohio State in their imminent setting.

“If you don’t learn from history, you can repeat it,” he said. “You still have to be ready on the football field, but the reality is that in our last 5 games there, we’re 2-3 and they’re 4-1 at home this year. That’s a reality we have to deal with.”

The Ohio State coach also has a healthy respect for what the Boilermakers are capable of doing on the field, and he indicated as much during his Tuesday media availability.

“They’re very balanced offensively,” he admitted. “In the past they’ve had different quarterbacks and focused on running and they’ve focused on the pass. This year they’ve done a better job balancing (the offense). On defense, they’re an attacking defensive group. Last time we were there they forced 5 turnovers and that’s what you need to do as a defense.”

Ohio State won’t have an easy time with Purdue on Saturday, but they’ve established themselves as a talented and determined team. If their performance measures up to Luke Fickell’s statements, the Buckeyes have a more than decent chance at victory.

Wisconsin (7-2, 3-2) #16 AP/#14 Coaches

The Wisconsin Badgers – against their own wishes – are a sterling example of the unexpected turns that a season can take. Wisconsin looked at one time to be a virtual lock for a spot in a BCS bowl and potentially the National Title game, but have fallen out of the conversation with back-to-back heartbreaking losses. Bret Bielema, coach of the Badgers, admitted as much on Saturday but also was explicitly clear about the behavior necessary to break out of the rut.

“As coaches and players you invest so such into trying to prepare for a win on Saturdays,” he said. “Winning soothes the soul and we got back on track by focusing on a one-game, one-day approach and we’ve taken that approach this week.”

This week is hardly a given, as Wisconsin faces a Minnesota team that has struggled on the season, but always gives the Badgers a hard time. Bielema made clear that he wasn’t about to take the Gophers lightly, and made clear that he was ready for a dogfight.

“We played a four-quarter game last week hoping to roll that into this week,” he said. “We’ve got a game this week against our long and storied rival Minnesota. They’ve gotten better every week and that’s the sign of a great-coached team. We’ve got a difficult task at hand and we’re excited to play again.”

A key party to Wisconsin’s success will be their outstanding linebacking corps – a group that Bielema was willing to readily praise when asked.

“The corps has played the best as any group of linebackers that I’ve had since I’ve been here and I’m glad to have three guys really competing. It was brought to my attention that we have one and two respectively in tackles and one’s a sophomore, one’s a junior so hopefully they’ll only get better.”

Linebacker play is only a small part in a successful football team, but if the Badgers can excel at such a crucial position it makes it that much easier to regain equilibrium and make a run for the position of the number one team in the conference. Wisconsin remains within striking distance, so only time will tell whether they will be able to capitalize.

Purdue (4-5, 2-3)

The Purdue Boilermakers come into this week’s contest against Ohio State undoubtedly questioning themselves after an embarrassing loss at the hands of Wisconsin. Head coach Danny Hope seemed willing to admit that Saturday’s game posed a challenge that his team just wasn’t ready for.

“We played an outstanding Wisconsin football team and gave up a lot of points and a lot of big plays,” he said. “We did some things well but we weren’t able to hold up. I’m disappointed we didn’t play better but we’re excited to get back to Ross-Ade this weekend.”

Hope’s excitement at returning to Lafayette was tempered somewhat by the ability of Ohio State, particularly on the defensive side of the ball.

“They’re very good on special teams. We are to but they’re near the top,” said Hope. “The defense is outstanding though, they’re really big across the line with fast,big linebackers who can run and they’re very physical in the secondary. We’ve played against some highly ranked defenses and OSU is right up there with the best defenses in the country.”

While the Buckeye defense certainly deserves credit, the offense is due its fair share of respect as well, which Hope also mentioned when asked.

“Offensively, they have a great line with strong and good pass protectors,” Hope said. “They’ve got a good stable of running backs and the two guys they feature can be dominant players, they’ve also got a talented duel-threat quarterback… everything about their team proposes a challenge for us.”

The message that Hope put forth for Purdue’s weekend game wasn’t reassuring, but he also made sure to establish a ‘want-to’ with his group of players. It’ll be interesting if his players are capable of living up to their end of the bargain on this weekend.

Illinois (6-3, 2-3)

After a beginning of the season that couldn’t have gone any better, the Illinois Fighting Illini find themselves in a rut that includes three consecutive losses in conference games. Head coach Ron Zook is obviously perturbed about all that has gone on recently, and expressed on Tuesday that this weekend’s game would need to be freer flowing than past games of past weeks.

“We’ve just got to come out loose and ready to play and not worry about making mistakes,” he said.  “We’re just trying to take the pressure off them. I wish I had an answer but when you have certain plays you’re starting the game with, those are the plays you’d expect to have the fewest problems with.”

Zook was referring to the fact that his teams generally try to run a set of offensive plays at the beginning of a game and they may not always work, which causes a sense of uncertainty.

Perhaps the biggest sense of uncertainty comes from Zook’s concern over facing the multi-faceted Michigan Wolverines – starting with Denard Robinson.

“(Denard Robinson) is one of the better quarterbacks in the country,” Zook said. “He can throw it, he can run it and he puts a lot of pressure on the defense. Their receiving corps is probably as good as anyone in the country they have a balanced mature offensive line. They’ve made some great strides as a defense this year and are playing with a lot of confidence.”

With such a collection of positive things to say about Michigan, it’s hard to argue that Illinois can feel comfortable with this game. Zook took a somewhat different approach though, admitting difficulty, but declaring that this game wouldn’t be easy either way.

“Every point you can get, you need to get it as soon as possible. This one won’t be over until it’s over.”

At the very least, Zook knows how to sell a high-profile game. Come Saturday, we’ll see if his team can be taken seriously.

Photo Courtesy of IU Athletics