Former Foes: week 11

Time to take a weekly look back at Penn State's past competition. So how bad is Michigan anyway?

Akron (2-8)

Got destroyed by Temple (56-17)

Akron was the latest victim of the "get Al Golden a hefty raise" tour as Temple beat the Zips for their 8^th straight victory. Akron actually had an early 17-7 first quarter lead but the Owls ripped off 49 unanswered points on the legs of freshman wunderkind Bernard Pierce (19 carries, 97 yards, 1 TD). Pierce tied another Temple record rushing for his 15^th TD on the season. Temple rolled up 403 total yards with 258 of that coming on the ground. Don't look now but Temple has the same record as Penn State, how does that make ya feel?

Next up: Bowling Green (5-5)

Syracuse (3-7)

Lost to lowly Louisville (10-9)

'Cuse runningback Delone Carter rushed for 129 yards and a score and the Orange outgained Louisville 266-151 but Cardinals QB Adam Froman hit Josh Chichester for a 15-yard touchdown pass with 1:24 remaining for the go ahead touchdown. Syracuse dominated Louisville at nearly every aspect of the game, they won time of possession by nearly 10 minutes, but they couldn't stop returner Trent Guy. Guy had a 53 yard kickoff return and a 44 yard punt return to setup the final scoring drive at the Syracuse 45 yard line.

Next up: Rutgers (7-2)

Temple (7-2)

Waylaid Akron

Next up: Kent State (5-5)

Iowa (9-2)

Lost to justaOSU (27-24)

Marvin McNutt's two touchdown catches and a stellar performance by Iowa freshman QB James Vandenberg wasn't enough as the Hawkeyes lost to the Buckeyes in overtime. Erstwhile pro soccer player Devin Barclay gave Ohio State the victory when he connected on a 39-yard field goal in overtime after Iowa turned the ball over. On their possession in overtime, Iowa lost 16 yards on three plays forcing them out of field goal range on 4^th down. Vandenberg threw an INT on 4^th and 26 and all OSU had to do was run the ball up the middle and set up for Barclay's heroics. It was another typical day for Terrelle "preseason Big Ten offensive player of the year" Pryor; he completed 14 of 17 for 93 yards. But as is usually the case, Pryor didn't need to be a hero he relied on a strong defense and the running of Brandon Saine (103 yards and 2 TD's) and Dan Herron (97 yards and a TD).

Next Up: Minnesota (6-5)

Illinois (3-7)

Lost to Northwestern (21-16)

The Fighting Zookers scored two 4^th quarter TD's but it wasn't enough to overcome the 21-3 hole they fell into. NU QB Mike Kafka threw for 305 yards and scored 2 TD's (one throwing and one running). Illinois had a chance for the victory but redshirt freshman QB Jacob Charest threw an interception with 32 seconds left on the Illini 35 yard line to seal the game. The Illini did manage 374 yards of offense but only 162 yards of that came through the air. The aforementioned Charest was benched at halftime for McGee who didn't perform much better.

Next Up: Cincinnati (10-0) – good luck with that Zooker

Eastern Illinois (8-2)

Beat Tennessee-Martin (49-13)

Jake Christensen threw for 322 yards and 4! touchdowns as EIU amassed 457 yards of offense. The victory gave Eastern a share of the conference championship. Now all they need is a victory against lowly Tennessee State (3-7) to get the league's automatic postseason bid.

Next Up: Tennessee State (3-7)

Minnesota (6-5)

Beat South Dakota State (16-13)

Yeah, Minnesota needed a 25 yard field goal with 2:22 to go to beat South Dakota State. It was a battle of field goals until each team scored TD's in the second quarter when Minnesota took a 13-10 lead. The score remained the same as both teams bored the crowd through three quarters and 13 punts until SDSU kicked the game tying field goal half way through the 4^th. Adam Weber and the Minnesota offense stunk it up again as Weber threw for 94 yards and the two teams combined for roughly 450 yards.

Next up: Iowa (9-2)

Michigan (5-6)

Got cheese grated by Wisconsin (45-24)

Wisconsin totaled a very balanced 240 yards through the air and 229 yards on the ground against the Wolverines Swiss Cheese defense (ok, ok I'll stop with the cheese references). Badger QB Scott Tolzien threw for 240 yards scored 4 td's through the air and added one on the ground. Runningback John Clay chipped in 155 yards rushing and a TD. Michigan lost its sixth straight Big Ten game for the first time since the 1958-59 seasons and they've now given up 35 plus points in four straight games for the first time in school history. Ohio State can now send Michigan home for the Holidays with a victory against their bitter rival. Oh by the way the news doesn't get any better in Ann Arbor. How's that Rich Rodriguez hire looking now Michigan fans?

Next up: justa Ohio State University (9-2)

Northwestern (7-4)

Beat Illinois (21-16)

Next up: Wisconsin (8-2)

justa Ohio State University (9-2)

Beat Iowa(27-24)

Next up: Michigan (5-6)