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ILLINOIS: One of only two teams in the Big Ten to drop their season opener,
the Fighting Illini fell to border rival Missouri in St. Louis over the
weekend, 23-13. RB Mikel Leshoure rushed for 112 yards on 20 carries for
Illinois, which outgained the Tigers on the ground, 200-98, but faltered in
the passing game as freshman QB Nate Scheelhaase completed just 9-of-23
attempts for 81 yards with a TD and three INTs. He did, however, pick up 76
yards on 16 carries. LB Ian Thomas led the UI defense with a career-high-tying
13 tackles, while DB Travon Bellamy logged a career-best dozen stops. The
Illini open a three-game homestand this Saturday as they play host to the
Salukis of Southern Illinois.
INDIANA: The Hoosiers scored early and often in thrashing visiting Towson in
last Thursday's season opener, 51-17. Indiana led 17-0 after the first quarter
and 38-14 at the break before making wholesale substitutions in the second
half. The win gave head coach Bill Lynch a 4-0 mark in home openers. QB Ben
Chappell threw for 182 yards and two TDs, while RB Darius Willis finished with
102 yards and a pair of scores on 14 carries. Indiana was actually outgained
in the game, 392-360, as Towson amassed 234 yards on the ground in averaging
5.4 ypc. LB Tyler Repogle had 10 tackles and one of IU's three INTs on the
night, one of which was returned 56 yards for a TD by CB Matt Ernest in the
third quarter. It was the Hoosiers' first INT return for a TD since November
of 2007. Indiana is idle this weekend, next hitting the field at Western
Kentucky on September 18th.
IOWA: The Hawkeyes dominated both sides of the ball in Saturday's season
opener against Eastern Illinois, whipping the Panthers in a 37-7 final. It was
the 10th straight season-opening win for Iowa, which rolled up 435 yards to
Eastern Illinois' 157, 86 of which came on its lone scoring drive in the first
half. Iowa QB Ricky Stanzi hit the mark on 18-of-23 passes for 229 yards with
a TD, while the ground attack featured a 109-yard, three-TD performance from
RB Adam Robinson. The UI defense logged seven TFLs in the game and allowed the
Panthers to convert just 3-of-13 third-down attempts. The one area the
Hawkeyes failed in was forcing turnovers, not coming up with a single one on
the day. The level of competition spikes this coming Saturday as the rival
Iowa State Cyclones blow into Iowa City.
MICHIGAN: What was supposed to be one of the more competitive games of the
opening weekend turned out to be rather lopsided as the Wolverines took apart
the visiting Connecticut Huskies, 30-10. Sophomore Denard Robinson set a new
Michigan record for rushing yards by a QB as he ran for 197 yards and a TD,
while completing an efficient 19-of-22 pass attempts for 186 yards and a
score. Meanwhile, the UM defense was on the field for just over 23 minutes,
yielding a total of 343 yards to the UConn offense. LB Obi Ezeh finished with
a team-high nine tackles and added a fumble recovery for the lone turnover in
the game. The Wolverines, who improved to 108-18-2 all-time in home openers,
hit the road for the first time this year when they pull into South Bend for
Saturday's non-league clash with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
MICHIGAN STATE: Le'Veon Bell rushed for the most yards ever by a Michigan
State freshman in his debut in Saturday's season-opening 38-14 win over
Western Michigan, throttling the Bronco defense for 141 yards and two TDs on
just 10 carries. Sophomore RB Edwin Baker added a career-high 117 yards and a
pair of scores for the Spartans, who tallied 483 yards of total offense
despite maintaining control of the ball for just over 26 minutes. QB Kirk
Cousins threw for 186 yards with a TD, that going to Keith Nichol, a former QB
who has made the conversion to WR. LB Greg Jones led all defenders in the game
with nine tackles, and he also forced a fumble and broke up a pass. Next up
for Michigan State is this Saturday's tilt with the Florida Atlantic Owls in
Detroit.
MINNESOTA: The Golden Gophers successfully opened the 2010 season last
Thursday, running the ball 67 times and controlling the clock for more than 45
minutes in upending the host Blue Raiders of Middle Tennessee in a 24-17
final. RB Duane Bennett led the Minnesota ground assault with 187 yards on 30
carries, while FB Jon Hoese scored three rushing TDs. With the run game firing
on all cylinders, QB Adam Weber didn't need to do much, hitting 10-of-17
passes for 150 yards. The Gophers picked up 27 first down to the Blue Raiders'
12, and outgained the home team, 431-318, while coming up with a pair of
turnovers and allowing just 1-of-8 third-down attempts to be converted
successfully. Minnesota opens a four-game homestand this Saturday when the
South Dakota Coyotes come to TCF Bank Stadium.
NORTHWESTERN: QB Dan Persa made the most of his first career start by going
19-of-21 for 222 yards and three TDs to lead the Wildcats past Vanderbilt,
23-21, in Saturday's season opener in Nashville. Persa was also effective with
his legs, rushing for 82 yards on 17 carries. WR Jeremy Ebert led all pass
catchers in the game with five grabs for 99 yards and a score. The two teams
combined to go just 8-of-26 on third-down conversion attempts, and
Northwestern won the game despite being outgained, 432-365. LB Nate Williams
and S Brian Peters led the NU defensive stand with 12 and 11 tackles,
respectively, while CB Justan Vaughn notched an INT. The Wildcats lift the lid
on their home slate this coming Saturday when the Illinois State Redbirds fly
into Evanston.
OHIO STATE: As expected, the second-ranked Buckeyes had little trouble in
their season opener, whipping visiting Marshall last Thursday in a 45-7 final.
Heisman-hopeful QB Terrelle Pryor threw for 247 yards and three TDs, while RB
Brandon Saine ran for 103 yards and two scores and Jaamal Berry made the most
of his seven totes by rushing for 80 yards. WRs Dane Sanzenbacher and DeVier
Posey combined for seven grabs for 154 yards and three TDs. LB Brian Rolle
returned an INT 30 yards for a score in the second quarter. Ohio State
averaged nearly eight yards per offensive play in piling up 529 yards of total
offense, compared to just 199 for the Thundering Herd. The Buckeyes will face
a much tougher task this weekend, as the Miami Hurricanes come to Columbus.
PENN STATE: Rob Bolden went 20-of-29 for 239 yards and two TDs in what was the
best passing performance by a true freshman starting QB in Penn State history,
as the Nittany Lions trounced the visiting Youngstown State Penguins on
Saturday afternoon, 44-14. WR Brett Brackett caught eight balls for 98 yards
and two scores, while RB Evan Royster ran for just 40 yards on 11 carries --
the Nittany Lions finishing with 132 yards and two TDs on 29 rush attempts.
The PSU defense limited YSU to 75 rushing yards, as the Penguins became the
17th straight Nittany Lion foe to fail to have a 100-yard rusher. Penn State
heads to Tuscaloosa this Saturday to take on defending national champion and
top-ranked Alabama.
PURDUE: The other Big Ten team to lose in week one was Purdue, which fell at
in-state rival Notre Dame on Saturday in a 23-12 final. The Boilermakers
gained a lackluster 102 yards on 32 carries (3.2 ypc), although FB Dan
Dierking rumbled his way to 56 yards on nine totes (6.2 ypc). QB Robert Marve
scored PU's lone TD in the game on a 23-yard run in the fourth quarter, and he
went 31-of-42 passing for 220 yards with a pair of INTs. WR Keith Smith led
all pass catchers in the game with 12 grabs (80 yards), while DE Ryan Kerrigan
made 2.5 of his seven tackles behind the line of scrimmage. Purdue plays the
first of three straight home game this Saturday when it welcomes the Western
Illinois Leathernecks to West Lafayette.
WISCONSIN: The Badgers controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the
ball in posting a 41-21 season-opening win at UNLV on Saturday night. It was
the 25th consecutive win over a non-conference foe in the regular season for
UW, dating back to a home loss to this same UNLV squad on September 13, 2003.
RBs John Clay and Montee Ball ran for two TDs each and combined with James
White to post 261 rushing yards, while QB Scott Tolzien completed 15-of-20
passes for 197 yards with an INT. In all, the Badgers racked up 475 yards of
total offense to 217 for UNLV. The Rebels were credited with just 10 first
downs in the game and averaged a mere 4.1 yards per offensive play. Wisconsin
opens a three-game homestand this Saturday when the San Jose Spartans pull
into Madison.