Big 10 Championship

            The inaugural Big 10 Football Championship will be played Saturday night at Lucas Oil Stadium. The two teams going for the championship is the #13 Michigan State Spartans and the #15 Wisconsin Badgers. Whoever wins the game not only gets the title of best team in the Big 10 but also the chance to play in the Rose Bowl.

            These two teams met back in October when Wisconsin traveled to Michigan State. The game was won by the Spartans because of a successful 50-yard Hail Mary pass that would make Doug Flutie proud. As you could tell by that game and their current rankings, both teams are pretty equal. The game on Saturday will probably be another nail-biter.

            The Michigan State Spartans are 10-2, their only losses coming at Notre Dame and at Nebraska. Their best wins came at home against Michigan, Wisconsin, and Iowa. The Spartans rank 64^th in total offense, 43^rd in total points scored, 3^rd in total defense, and 6^th in total points allowed. I am shocked at how average their offense is. Senior quarterback Kirk Cousins is coming off a solid 2010 season and seemed poised to be one of the best passers in the country. Obviously he has been far from spectacular. The spectacular part of Michigan State has been their defense, which is the best in the Big 10.

            The Wisconsin Badgers come into this game with a 10-2 record, but their only losses came in dramatic fashion. I’ve already talked about their loss to Sparty. The other loss came at Ohio State when the Buckeyes scored a touchdown in the final minute of the game. Wisconsin ranks 12^th on total offense, 4^th in total points scored, 7^th in total defense, and 4^th in total points allowed.  I thought this was one of the best teams before the season and I still believe they’re one of the Top 8 teams. They are easily the best two loss team. It’s easy to say, but if they would have stopped Ohio State and Michigan State on their final drives, Wisconsin would be 12-0 and a game away from playing in the national championship.

            These teams are pretty equal, but I would give a slight edge to Wisconsin since their offense is a little more explosive than Michigan State’s. This should be a very close game, just like their meeting earlier in the season was. Remember, whoever wins not only claims the Big 10 Championship, but also the chance to play in the Rose Bowl Game.

Predicted score: Wisconsin-30, Michigan State-28

            The game is played at 8:15 this Saturday and will be aired on FOX.

UPDATE 12/4/2011: Wisconsin has defeated Michigan State 42-39 to claim the Big 10 Championship. The Badgers will be heading to the Rose Bowl Game. The Spartans' bow destination is unknown.

Notre Dame at Pittsburgh preview

           
            The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are looking to even up their record at 2-2 after defeating Michigan State last weekend, 31-13. The Irish proved in their victory over Michigan State that they are a great team that is able to win every game they play in. If they play the same way against the University of Pittsburgh Panthers, they should have no problem winning the game.

            
            The Pitt Panthers are 2-1 with wins over Maine and Buffalo (oooohhhh I’m so impressed) and a loss at Iowa. The Panthers have a pretty mediocre team. They rank in the mid-50’s (out of 120 teams) in passing and rushing yards. Their defense is even worse. Their pass defense is ranked 119^th and total defense is 97^th. To sum things up here; Notre Dame should shut down Pitt’s offense, and Pitt’s defense won’t have a chance against Notre Dame’s offense. This doesn’t mean it’s gonna be a cakewalk though. The Irish need to come out and show that they are the best team on the field.

Keys to the game

Limit Turnovers- So I’m gonna stop asking for “no turnovers” because that appears impossible for the Irish. They had five in each of their first two games and three last week. That’s 13 in three games and the worst in America. Maybe there‘s a pattern here. 5-5-5-_.That means three this week!

Don’t give up any big plays- This means no plays that bring Pitt back into the game or win the game. This includes, but not limited to: kick returns for touchdowns, turnovers returned for touchdowns, long pass plays for touchdowns, and long runs for touchdowns. Notre Dame’s defense has given up several of these “big plays”. This was the biggest problem the Irish had in their loss to Michigan, esp. in the 4^th quarter.

Manage the offense- This one is for Irish quarterback, Tommy Rees. This isn’t gonna be a game where he needs to throw the ball deep every play and attempt to score touchdown after touchdown (like he’s had to do in the past three games). Rees just needs to keep the offense in rhythm and moving forward. Let the running backs, Cierre Wood and Jonas Gray, do the hard work on the ground. Then spread the ball around to the receivers and tight ends.

            
            Pittsburgh is nowhere near as talented as the past three opponents have been for the Irish; all of which have been fairly close games that weren’t decided until the final quarter. That being said, this should be a pretty easy game for Notre Dame fans to watch.

My predicted score: Notre Dame-35, Pittsburgh-16

So I decided to drop this bomb. Yeah, that's Taylor Swift, decked out in Notre Dame gear. Swift was on the sidelines for the Michigan State game last Saturday (9/17). I think this basically solidifies the fact that we were meant to get married.