Creeping the B1G: Week 9

There's no place like home in the Big Ten this week, as all six home teams won.

Minnesota 38, Indiana 31

Minnesota did its best to blow this game, as a 22-point fourth quarter lead evaporated quickly. A 67-yard touchdown pass with 1:34 left gave the Gophers the lead back, though, and they held off a late Indiana comeback attempt to win it in the pouring rain.

What this means for Minnesota and Indiana: I'm not really sure, honestly. Both teams are just shooting to be bowl eligible, so this will help Minnesota, but any division championship hopes were dashed weeks ago.

Northwestern 31, (#20) Wisconsin 17

17 unanswered points by the Wildcats in the third and fourth quarters really put this one out of reach. Clayton Thorson didn't have a stellar day passing, but he did enough on the ground to contribute to a truly abysmal day for the Badgers.

What this means for Northwestern: Uhhh, so the Wildcats are somehow in the driver's seat of the Big Ten West? Northwestern holds a 1.5 game lead over every other team in the division. The game in Iowa City in two weeks against the Hawkeyes is a big one.

What this means for Wisconsin: A disappointing season continues with another ugly loss. The Badgers went from having playoff hopes to just hoping for a decent bowl game. The matchup in Happy Valley in two weeks looks less and less daunting.

Michigan State 23, Purdue 13

Welp, Purdue is back to normal. Backup QB Rocky Lombardi threw for two touchdowns in his first start for the Spartans, and the four-game winning streak for the Boilermakers is toast.

What this means for Michigan State and Purdue: Basically the same thing as Minnesota and Indiana. Both teams are likely going to barely be bowl eligible, and they're pretty uninspiring at this point.

Nebraska 45, Bethune-Cookman 9

This one was over before it started. No matter how bad Nebraska is, it won't lose to a FCS school. The Huskers were up by five touchdowns at halftime.

What this means for Nebraska: Two game winning streak!

Maryland 63, Illinois 33

Illinois' first four scores were field goals. Maryland's first four were touchdowns. It's hard to win when that happens. Javon Leake scored four touchdowns and Kasim Hill added three through the air to put this out of reach really early.

What this means for Illinois: Not much. The Illini won't make a bowl.

What this means for Maryland: This was a must-win for bowl eligibility, and the Terps got it done. They'll likely clinch that over the next two weeks against either Michigan State or Indiana.