So last week I took a look into the Penn State Nittany Lions who I view as the top team in the Big Ten this year. But you never know what may happen with the Big Ten season getting underway this weekend. This week I will take a look at the Wisconsin Badgers and last years cinderella Illinois.
Lets start with Wisconsin. Yes, I think they are overrated even though they now sit at #9 in the rankings. They have a big win at Fresno State in Week 3 but I'm not completely sold that they are for real. Their next 3 games will say a lot about their team. They start this weekend with a trip to Ann Arbor. Wisconsin should dominate this game but if they start slow like they have been known to do this year the game could end up closer than most would expect. After that they have home contests with Ohio State and Penn State which will make or break their season. With a defense that is usually strong and a strong running attack with PJ Hill anything can happen. There defense could be just strong enough and the running of PJ Hill could prove just enough to get them a Big Ten Championship.
So what about the Illini? There defense has looked rough and the offense hasn't looked as dominant as they were in the Week 1 loss to Missouri. They were only able to beat Louisiana Lafayette 20-17. With a bye week Ron Zook was given time to prepare his team for their Big Ten opener at Penn State this weekend. Will this game prove that this Illini team is not ready to repeat the success of last season or will they shock everyone and get momentum to carry them through the year? Juice Williams has the weapons with Arrelious Benn and running back Daniel Dufrene is starting to get things going as he is averaging 6.7 yards per carry. The biggest question in my opinion is will the defense show up? That will ultimately determine the fate of this Illini team because the offense will not struggle all season long.
Come back next week for a look inside what I view as the final two Big Ten contenders in Michigan State and Iowa.
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