It was a great weekend in the Big Ten conference wasn’t it?

It was great because Nebraska had nothing at stake. We could take the week off, and either chose to ignore football completely or watch and enjoy the pain of others (hahahah MICHIGAN) as their hopes and dreams were squashed like so many defenders in Saquon Barkley’s way.

It was only one weekend though. This week we can get back to the hand-wringing and wondering if we’re going to beat the Purdue Boilermakers.

DID YOU HEAR NEBRASKA IS A 6.5 POINT UNDERDOG TO THE BOILERS?

Apparently it’s true. The team that lost to Rutgers is favored over us despite us beating Rutgers in the first place. Perhaps it’s because it’s on the road. Purdue is known for being a really tough place to play.. because of the wind of October that has sent many a sailing ship to its doom... or something like that.

Or perhaps it’s because we suck. We can spend the whole week hating ourselves because of this. That will be fun, won’t it?

Purdue vs Rutgers

Rutgers won their second conference game, the first time they'd won back-to-back Big Ten conference games since joining the Big Ten. They beat Purdue 14-12. The Boilermaker defense forced seven three and outs, while the Purdue offense out-gained Rutgers 474 – 217 but scored only one touchdown.

How did Purdue lose?

They gave up a 74 yard run to Gus Edwards and and a 35 yard pass to Raheem Blackshear.

Two big plays. That’s what happens when your offense can’t manage it’s way out of a paper bag.

Northwestern vs Iowa

Northwestern beat Iowa, 17 – 10. This one went to overtime tied at 10. It was a tough game to watch. It wasn't that both defenses were walls of steel, but that both offenses just couldn't be consistent enough to score. Iowa punted for more yardage their their offense (6 punts for 318 yards vs 312 yards for total offense) while Northwestern was better only because their ran more offensive plays (5 punts for 254 yards vs 339 total yards on offense).

Then there was a riot between the Northwestern and Iowa fans:

Minnesota vs Illinois

The Gophers finally got a win over a really bad Illinois team. Minnesota had 292 yards of rushing, with only 47 passing. They desperately need to find a quarterback that can play even as a game manager.

Illinois is starting 14 freshman. One wonders if they'll give Lovie Smith enough time for that to work out for them.

Wisconsin vs Maryland

The Badgers squashed Maryland like they have so many on others on their schedule so far. Jonathan Taylor made history:

Wisconsin football: Jonathan Taylor makes history vs. Maryland - Bucky's 5th Quarter

On his third carry in the first quarter of the Wisconsin Badgers’ 38-13 win over the Maryland Terrapins, Taylor went over the 1,000-rushing yard mark on the season, matching the FBS freshman record for the fewest games to reach that milestone.

I think it’s really nice that Nebraska helped in getting this obviously wonderful young man to become successful. (sigh).

Indiana versus Michigan State

The Hoosiers once again control most of the game over a ranked opponent only to lose it again at the end. This was another game that was tough to watch as both defenses played pretty well but both offenses couldn’t score. I'm not sure why Indiana decided to settle for field goals when they should've tried for touchdowns, but ultimately it cost them the game.

Michigan versus Penn State

This game was a butt kicking from beginning to end. Saquon Barkley scored on a 69 yard run on the second offensive play. Michigan got the ball, I went upstairs to get a glass of water (believe it or not), came back down and Penn stated already scored again. Give some credit to Michigan for weathering the early storm, but they were destroyed wholly and completely.

Let’s see… a native son. A former quarterback. A massive, multimillion dollar per year salary. It sounds familiar, but I just can’t figure out why.

One of the guys from our Michigan site did not appreciate this tweet.

This year Penn State wins 42 – 13, last year Michigan won, 49 – 10.

What happened in a year? One team, Michigan, lost 19 players to the NFL, 16 of which were taken in the draft. The Wolverines returned the fewest starters in the FBS. Penn State, on the other hand, grew up.

You could take the perspective that Jim Harbaugh is overrated and not a good coach. It's fun to think that, but this is only year three… Year three… hmmmm… How is it that Michigan might take a step back this year? Is it as simple as turnover? Could it be that as a team turns over its players it might regress from year to year? Could it be that playing a bunch of inexperienced players against a team with more experienced players might make a difference? Perhaps something to keep in mind for the future…

NEWS

Huskers Win Exhibition Opener - Huskers.com - Nebraska Athletics Official Web Site
James Palmer Jr. had a game-high 17 points, as Nebraska built a 23-point lead and held on down the stretch in posting a 76-72 win over Mississippi State Sunday afternoon at Humphrey Coliseum.

Tanner Lee is Starting to Look Like the QB You Heard About | Hail Varsity
Well, don’t look now, but since returning to the field to the sound of boos Lee has pretty much been that guy. In the last three-and-a-half games, Lee has completed 63 of his 109 passes for 869 yards, seven touchdowns and just one interception (albeit another pick-six, his fourth).

Let’s Talk Scott Frost . . . – Husker Chalk Talk
One, I’m not advocating for a coaching change at this point. If we do make one, though, Frost wouldn’t be in my first tier of coaches. Doesn’t mean I don’t like him a lot, doesn’t mean I wouldn’t want him at Nebraska if we struck out at the first tier level. But after a 15-year freeze on the program, it’s time to start acting like a blue blood in how we hire head coaches. Shoot for the moon.

Penn State beats Michigan: Saquon Barkley, Trace McSorley shine | SI.com

On White Out night in State College, Penn State passed its first of a three-part Big Ten test with flying colors.

I clipped this because of Andy Staples video about SCOTT FROST.

Takeaways from Michigan’s blowout loss at Penn State - Maize n Brew
Harbaugh is making $9 million a year, which was a necessary and worthy price tag to pull him from the NFL and he is worth every penny to the program. With that comes the expectations that Nick Saban and Urban Meyer have, which is completely acceptable and warranted.

He took a pedestrian Brady Hoke roster and made them 20-6 over the last two seasons, which is commendable despite a rough end to last season. However, the fact remains that Harbaugh is 6-5 in his last 11 games and this team is not improving every week and there are still glaring holes on offense.

ESPN’s College GameDay to Appear at Penn State Game for Second Consecutive Week - Black Shoe Diaries
College GameDay will be heading to Columbus for one of the biggest games of the college football season as No. 2 Penn State collides with No. 6 Ohio State.

Michigan tumbles in the polls after loss - Maize n Brew
The way the Wolverines lost is probably what’s having the greatest impact

Winning Ugly Is A Beautiful Thing For Rutgers Football - On the Banks
Stats and style points don’t matter as much as the final score, which ultimately determines real progress

Beware to all, for the Rutger will cometh - Inside NU
Eventually.

Three up, three down from Northwestern’s OT victory against Iowa - Inside NU
Who showed out in Northwestern’s biggest win of the season so far?

The Iowa offense: Fish and Family. - Black Heart Gold Pants
The Iowa offense is embedded within The Iowa Way, and The Iowa Way is just a fancy moniker for The Kirk Ferentz Way.

Rally to be held in support of paying former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach | Lubbock Online | Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
Mike Leach is still demanding to be paid by Texas Tech.

Just to be Clear - This is about basketball:

Then There’s This

I Never Learned To Speak Russian - The Home Of Tweedy
Our our Ryan Tweedy can write better than you thought he could. A nice tribute to his mother-in-law as well as his beautiful wife.