Big Ten: Teams unable to defend home field

In Big Ten basketball, holding the home court means everything. It used to mean a great deal in the fall, too, but as this weekend showed, playing on one’s home turf isn’t as much of an advantage as it probably should be.

• The Wolverines let a 14-3 lead slip away at the Big House — a dwelling that’s become synonymous with disappointment these past two seasons.

• In its golden opportunity against Penn State, Purdue failed to put up much of a fight at Ross-Ade Stadium. The Boilermakers’ offense gained just better than 50 percent of the Nittany Lions offensive total, and Purdue’s only points came late when Penn State was gliding to the finish line. A missed extra point added an exclamation point to the team’s poor showing.

• Entering this weekend, Wisconsin owned the nation’s second-longest home winning streak at 16 games. But with its band suspended, and its home crowd not as crazed as usual, the Badgers allowed Ohio State to steal the game on a last-minute touchdown.

Of the six conference teams with perfect home records still intact, the one who might keep that record the longest is Northwestern. The Wildcats will undoubtedly be tested by Michigan State this weekend, but if successful they’ll only need to beat Purdue before succumbing to a likely home loss to Ohio State on November 8. In the meantime, Michigan State will host Ohio State; the Buckeyes will host Penn State; and the Nittany Lions must fend off Michigan, whom they haven’t beaten the past three years. Illinois must win three games during that span, while Minnesota must beat the Wildcats and Wolverines.

Who would have ever thought the 49,256 screaming fans of Ryan Field could make such a difference?

Scoreboard

Minnesota 16, Indiana 7
Michigan State 16, Iowa 13
Penn State 20, Purdue 6
Illinois 45, Michigan 20
Ohio State 20, Wisconsin 17

Team of the Week: Ohio State

Wisconsin appeared to have exhausted Ohio State in the second half after P.J. Hill capped a 63-yard Badger drive. But Terrelle Pryor and the Buckeyes went on a drive of their own, and 80 yards later the Buckeyes were celebrating in the end zone. An important road win will go a long way to help bring the Buckeyes’ end-of-season bowl hopes back to life.

Disappointment of the Week: Indiana

In a game many believed the Hoosiers could win, Bill Lynch’s team committed six penalties and gained just 49 yards on the ground. Even worse, Indiana converted just one of 10 third down opportunities. It could be a long home stretch for the Hoosiers this year.

Player of the Week: Juice Williams, QB, Illinois

Williams’ 431-yard day in the win over Michigan was the product of several big plays. Williams threw long touchdown passes to Daniel Dufrene (57 yards) and Jeff Cumberland (77), and his 46-yard pass to Arrelious Benn helped to set up the Illini’s first touchdown. He also had a 50-yard gain on the ground in the fourth quarter.

Freshman of the Week: Terrelle Pryor, QB, Ohio State

Up until his final attempt of the game, Pryor had carried 14 times for nine yards; then he bolted 11 yards for the decisive score. Pryor’s feet weren’t his best asset on Saturday, but the fact that his mind helped to manage the win over Wisconsin at Camp Randall is proof that this freshman quarterback is growing up fast.

Penn State punishes Painter

On Saturday, Curtis Painter inched closer to Drew Brees on the Boilermakers’ all-time passing list, but it wasn’t a pretty performance. Painter completed just 13 of 22 attempts for 112 yards — his lowest total since becoming a full-time starter. The Nittany Lions pressured the senior quarterback while the secondary did well in containing top targets Greg Orton and Desmond Tardy.

Greene wins battle of backs

Iowa’s Shonn Greene out-shined counterpart Javon Ringer of Michigan State in their meeting on Saturday. Ringer, the Big Ten rushing leader, was held to 91 yards on 25 carries, while Greene gained 157 yards on 30 carries. Still, Ringer had the last laugh. With his team trailing by three points late, Greene was stopped short on a fourth down carry that ended Iowa’s hopes for an upset at East Lansing.

A new star arrives at Ann Arbor

In past weeks, freshmen Steven Threet and Sam McGuffie led the charge for Michigan. Against Illinois, another freshman rose to the occasion. Wide receiver Martavious Odoms caught seven passes for 129 yards. Odoms had nice days against Miami-Ohio and Notre Dame but Saturday took the 5-foot-9, 171-pound weapon to a new level of success.

Additional Notes

The Gophers had a plus-one this week in the turnover battle. For the season, Tim Brewster’s club leads the conference with a plus-10 — three better than second place Michigan State

Minnesota wide receiver Eric Decker tied a school record with 13 catches in the win over Indiana. In the season opener Decker caught 10 passes, and he is currently on pace to reach 100 for the year.

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