Blue White Illustrated

, , # 2012 RECORD 12-0 (8-0 Big Ten) SERIES RECORD Ohio State leads, 15-13 MOST RECENT MEETING The visiting Buckeyes scored 21 third-quarter points to rally past Penn State, 3523, on Oct. 27, 2012. OFFENSE Braxton Miller returns for his junior season and should be even better than he was a year ago. He's reportedly made improvements in his passing mechanics, and he will have the services of blue-chip wideout Corey Brown, who caught 60 passes for 669 yards a season ago. Carlos Hyde, Bri'onte Dunn and Rod Smith will compete for carries in a very solid backfield. DEFENSE The Buckeyes suffered some big losses in their front seven – only one starter returns – but opponents shouldn't get their hopes up. Sophomore ends Noah Spence and Adolphus Washington both appear headed for breakout seasons after combining for seven sacks in the spring game, and the Buckeyes do return last year's top tackler, linebacker Ryan Shazier. OUTLOOK The Buckeyes are once again championship-eligible after a one-year postseason hiatus, and that means they're the overwhelming favorites to win the Big Ten. They could also find themselves competing for the national title if they manage to replicate last year's 12-0 regular-season record. Michigan will have something to say about that in the Big House on Nov. 30, but the schedule is pretty manageable up until that point, with Wisconsin, Iowa and Penn State all set to visit Columbus. Everyone knew the Buckeyes were destined for big things under Urban Meyer. The only surprise is the speed with which they've re-emerged as legitimate title contenders. The Tressel era's implosion seems like it happened a lifetime ago. – MATT HERB , ) % &' (! 2012 RECORD 2-10 (0-8 Big Ten) SERIES RECORD Penn State leads, 16-4 MOST RECENT MEETING Visiting Penn State stormed past the Illini, 35-7, on Sept. 29, 2012. OFFENSE The Illini's most acute needs are on the offensive line. A year ago, they ranked 97th nationally in rushing and 111th in sacks allowed. Quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase took a pounding but is back for his final season. If the offensive line can keep him upright, look for the fifth-year senior to improve on his disappointing numbers from a year ago, which included 1,316 yards passing and only four touchdown passes. DEFENSE The bad news? Illinois returns only four starters from a defense that wasn't very good last year. The good news? Linebackers Mason Monheim and Mike Svetina are among the returnees. Those two combined for 126 tackles last season, and they'll need to be every bit as productive this fall if Illinois is to improve on a dreadful performance in 2013 in which the team surrendered 193 rushing yards per game. OUTLOOK The Illini can't help but improve in their second season under Tim Beckman. Last year they averaged 16.7 points per game while giving up 32.1 points on average. But with nine starters back on offense, there's reason to believe they'll be able to change that equation. Two potential stumbling blocks are the defense, which still has plenty of vacancies to fill, and the schedule, which deals up Cincinnati and Washington in September and features games against Nebraska, Wisconsin, Michigan State and Penn State during a four-week stretch beginning Oct. 5. Good thing the Illini have an off-week before the start of the Big Ten season, because they're gonna need it. – M.H. , ! "" ) $# &, "" 2012 RECORD 6-7 (2-6 Big Ten) SERIES RECORD Penn State leads, 8-4 MOST RECENT MEETING Penn State defeated Minnesota, 33-21, at TCF Bank Stadium on Oct. 23, 2010. OFFENSE Philip Nelson, a 6-foot-2, 215-pound sophomore, started seven games last year and will likely be the full-time quarterback now that MarQueis Gray has graduated. But the biggest star in this offense may turn out to be tailback Donnell Kirkwood, who finished with 926 yards on 218 carries last year. The Gophers also have a young but promising offensive line that could get a lift from center Brian Bobek. Bobek sat out last year after transferring from Ohio State. DEFENSE Minnesota has two openings at cornerback and may turn to talented safety Derrick Wells to fill one of the spots. The Gophers were 12th in the country in pass defense a year ago, and there's plenty of talent on hand even after the departure of experienced cornerbacks Michael Carter and Troy Stoudermire. At linebacker, however, it looks as though Minnesota will be relying on a juco talent infusion to patch things up. OUTLOOK What to make of the Golden Gophers? They lost seven of their last nine games in 2012, but nearly finished with a winning record anyway. This year's nonconference schedule – UNLV, New Mexico State, Western Illinois, San Jose State – should help the Gophers get off to another fast start. But if there's to be a breakthrough in coach Jerry Kill's third season in Minneapolis, this team will have to start making some headway in the Big Ten. It helps that Iowa, Nebraska, Penn State and Wisconsin all must visit TCF Bank Stadium. It also helps that Ohio State is nowhere to be found. – M.H.

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