November 5, 2009

David Fox
Rivals.com College Football Staff Writer

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Minnesota wide receiver Eric Decker learned before last week's game that he would miss the rest of the season with torn ligaments and a torn tendon in his foot. Recovery time for the injury is eight to nine months.

Minnesota did just fine without its top player against Michigan State, rolling up a season-high 505 yards of total offense in a come-from-behind win.

"When they had their receiver in there, you knew where they were going with the football," Zook said. "Now, you don't know where they're going. Their tight end had eight catches. Both their running backs are running well. They're a little harder to prepare for because you don't know what they're going to do."

At least Illinois will have last week's game tape to watch. Michigan State couldn't say the same and struggled against coordinator Jedd Fisch's new-look offense.

Decker clearly was the star before his injury, with 50 catches for 758 yards. That was good enough to rank second on the team in all-purpose yardage even though Decker doesn't return kicks and didn't have a rushing attempt.

Minnesota had some new and not-so-new faces involved in the passing attack against Michigan State. Going into the game, Decker, wide receiver Troy Stoudermire and backup quarterback MarQueis Gray were the only players with a touchdown catch. Three other players left East Lansing with TD catches.

Senior tight end Nick Tow-Arnett set career-highs across the board with eight catches for 81 yards and two touchdowns. Running back Duane Bennett caught a 62-yard touchdown pass on the first play of the game. He caught the 59-yard clincher late in the fourth quarter when a pass intended for Tow-Arnett bounced off the falling tight end and into Bennett's hands.

Brandon Green caught two passes for 60 yards and a touchdown after entering the game with 14 catches. Sophomore Da'Jon McKnight, whose only catch this season was on a two-point conversion, caught four passes for 93 yards.

"Jedd did a great job [in play-calling]," coach Tim Brewster said. "Our preparation was very complete going into the Michigan State game and we executed very well."

It was a welcome change of pace for QB Adam Weber, a three-year starter. He has completed a career-low 55.3 percent of his passes and has more interceptions than touchdowns for the first time in his career. He was 19-of-31 for 416 yards and five touchdowns against Michigan State, which gives Brewster confidence going into the final three games of the season without Decker.

"The potential is there," Brewster said. "It was exciting for our football team to see our young receivers to step up and accept the challenge of going up against a really great secondary and playing well."

KEY MATCHUP: Penn State QB Daryll Clark vs. Ohio State secondary. Ohio State has intercepted at least one pass in each game this season on the way to 15 for the season, second-most in the Big Ten. Clark was shaky early in the season, his first without WRs Derrick Williams, Jordan Norwood and Deon Butler. After throwing seven picks in the first six games, though, Clark hasn't thrown any in the past three. Of course, he also hasn't faced a top-20 defense since throwing three interceptions against Iowa.

PLAYER ON THE SPOT: Ohio State QB Terrelle Pryor. Actually, he'll be under the microscope this week. Pryor's Buckeyes still are in the Big Ten title race, and he returns to his home state - he graduated from Jeannette (Pa.) High - to face a team that recruited him hard. His 187 rushing yards over the past two games are the highest two-game total in his career, but he was only 24-of-48 throwing the ball in that span.

NUMBERS GAME: Iowa's six turnovers and five interceptions in last week's win against Indiana are by far the highest single-game total for any of the nation's seven undefeated teams. None have turned the ball over more than four times or thrown more than two interceptions in a game.

WHAT THEY'RE SAYING:

"I want everybody to have patience. I don't have much of it, but I wish everybody would have patience. ... It takes a little bit longer sometimes than anybody would want. But the progress is being made, not as quickly as some people would like, but we're going to press forward and get it done eventually. Hopefully, sooner rather than later." - Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez

"They're going to tear me up. I'm sure they're going to be giving me a lot of stuff, maybe throwing stuff, saying a lot of things, but I won't hear any of it. ... I got my family with me, all 75 [players] that travel, and we're going to be ready to rock. I can't wait." - Ohio State QB Terrelle Pryor, on his trip to Penn State

"Borland, the big thing for him is that he's got a mustache growing, but he's so young, there's no color to it and it's not real thick, so he's got to dye it to make it jump out." - Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema, on freshman LB Chris Borland, who forced a fumble and recorded a tackle for loss in last week's win over Purdue

"He does have a rare ability, when he struggles, to come right back and just keep pushing forward, much like a relief pitcher. If you're in a high-risk position, you have to have that capability." - Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz, on QB Ricky Stanzi, who threw five interceptions last week against Indiana but is 17-3 as a starter

Etc.: Coaches at Indiana and Michigan State wanted the Big Ten office to review questionable calls in their games. Replay officials overturned an Indiana touchdown catch against Iowa, saying Terrance Turner's foot did not touch the ground on the reception. The Spartans sent several plays in for review, including a fumble recovery ruled an incomplete pass. Minnesota scored the winning touchdown on the next play. ... Iowa defensive coordinator Norm Parker is off his feet this week and will coach from the press box for the second time this season. Parker was in a wheelchair last week while receiving antibiotic treatment for complications from a foot injury. He has struggled with diabetes and had a toe amputated in July. ... Michigan has turned the ball over 14 times in the past four Big Ten games for a minus-10 turnover margin. The Wolverines were plus-1 in turnover margin through the first four games. ... Wisconsin held four October opponents to 234 yards per game compared to 371.8 yards per game in four September games. ... Purdue is seeking to beat Ohio State and Michigan in the same season for the first time since Drew Brees' final season in 2000. ... Ohio State K Aaron Pettrey is out for the rest of the regular season after having surgery to repair a torn medial collateral ligament in his right knee. He will be replaced by either freshman Ben Buchanan or junior Devin Barclay, a former Major League Soccer player. ... Illinois WR Arrelious Benn has been dealing with shoulder and ankle injuries, coach Ron Zook said. ... Indiana CB Ray Fisher, the Big Ten's top kickoff returner, will not play against Wisconsin because of minor knee surgery. ... Northwestern expects QB Mike Kafka to start against Iowa; he left last week's loss to Penn State in the second quarter with a hamstring injury. Backup Dan Persa will play if Kafka is not available. ... Iowa freshman RB Brandon Wegher rushed for 118 yards and three touchdowns on 25 carries in his first career start against Indiana. ... Minnesota freshman CB Michael Carter will play against Illinois despite an arrest for underage consumption and obstructing the legal process. Coach Tim Brewster said the matter will be handled internally. ... Wisconsin DE O'Brien Schofield leads the nation in tackles for loss with 16.5. ... No Big Ten team is in the top 25 nationally in scoring offense or in the top 20 in pass offense. ... Indiana leads the Big Ten in turnover margin and is ninth nationally at plus-9.

David Fox is a national writer for Rivals.com. He can be reached at dfox@rivals.com.