Week 8: #12 Iowa is off to 7-0 start, with opportunity to get healthy for B1G run ...

Iowa sophomore MLB #43 Josey Jewell has been a leader on the 2015 Hawkeye
defense, in the 40-10 win over Northwestern in Evanston. The Hawkeyes
opened 1985 with a 7-0 start, with the seventh win over the Wildcats, as well.

Iowa City, IA -- The #12 Iowa Hawkeyes (7-0, 3-0 B1G West) enjoy a bye week, ahead of the final five games of regular conference schedule. The Hawkeyes and Boilermakers are idle during Week 8, also #15 Michigan (5-2, 2-1 B1G East) and Minnesota (4-3, 1-2 B1G West) enjoy a week to rebound from a loss, before the playing of the Battle for the Little Brown Jug at TCF Bank Stadium on Halloween.

• Northwestern (1-2 B1G West) @ Nebraska (1-2 B1G West) 11:00 am on ESPN2 - The Wildcats have lost back to back games @ Michigan (38-0), vs. Iowa (40-10), as the Cornhuskers broke back to back B1G losses @ Illinois and vs. Wisconsin, with a 48-25 road win @ Minnesota to gain first B1G win of 2015. Difference in this game likely will be Nebraska junior Tommy Armstrong leading the Cornhuskers over redshirt freshman Clayton Thorson for Northwestern ... quarterback play is very important in B1G play!
• Indiana (0-3 B1G East) @ #7 Michigan State (7-0, 3-0 B1G East) 2:30 pm on ESPN2 - After a 4-0 start in the non-conference, the Hoosiers have hit the B1G hurdles in the Big Ten East, as they fall to OSU, PSU and Rutgers, ahead of the next challenge with the undefeated Spartans in East Lansing.
• Penn State (4-2, 2-1 B1G East) @ Maryland (0-2 B1G East) in Baltimore, 2:30 pm on ESPN - The Nittany Lions lost the first Big Ten game against the Terrapins last season 20-19 in Happy Valley. 2nd year PSU coach James Franklin opened with a loss at Temple and last week fell at Ohio State, so can interim coach Mike Locksley circle the wagons in a little less than 14 days in Baltimore?
• Wisconsin (5-2, 2-1 B1G West) @ Illinois (4-2, 1-1 B1G West) 2:30 pm on BTN - The Badgers and Fighting Illini both have fallen to the B1G West leading Hawkeyes, so a loss, will like eliminate either team from the West race. Oddly, both teams are lead by the passing game, so who establishes the run may come out with a victory on Saturday. Both teams have the ability to make a big play with their defense. Bill Cubit's boys have had two weeks, but that isn't always a good thing. Paul Chryst enjoyed a B1G win over Purdue at home, but this is a B1G road test in year one of the Chryst era ...
• #1 Ohio State (7-0, 3-0 B1G East) @ Rutgers (1-2 B1G East) 7:00 pm on ABC / espn3 - The Buckeyes will open with QB J.T. Barnett, as #1, after Cardale Jones opened the first seven, as the starter. The Scarlet Knights gave the Spartans a game in prime time, so do they have another strong performance in them? Coach Kyle Flood is back on the sidelines, after serving a suspension. Clock and down management should improve, but Buckeyes may be a tougher out.

The Buckeyes take a 20 game win streak into game @ Rutgers
on Saturday night on ABC, with a 7 p.m. kickoff.