College Football

Michigan's battle against Maryland, Jim Harbaugh saga headline Week 12 Big Ten slate

Published Nov. 16, 2023 11:28 a.m. ET

The Big Ten enters the penultimate week of the regular season with both of its divisional races still up in the air.

The Big Ten East will remain unclaimed after Week 12 as both No. 2 Ohio State and No. 3 Michigan are still unbeaten. Even if one of those teams loses on Saturday, it can still clinch the Big Ten East in the battle on Nov. 25 (noon ET on FOX and the FOX Sports app) due to the tiebreaker.

No. 16 Iowa can clinch the first spot in the Big Ten Championship Game this weekend. It just needs to beat 5-5 Illinois at home (3:30 p.m. ET on FS1 and the FOX Sports app). If the Hawkeyes fall to the Fighting Illini on Saturday, chaos could ensue in the final week of the regular season. Five of the other six teams in the division still remain in the hunt to win the Big Ten West entering Week 12.

Here's what to watch during Week 12 in the Big Ten Conference:

Game of the week

No. 3 Michigan (10-0, 7-0 Big Ten) at Maryland (6-4, 3-4), Saturday, (noon ET on FOX and the FOX Sports app)

The Wolverines powered through their off-field problems last week to take care of business against Penn State. Maryland built some confidence with a road win against Nebraska that clinched bowl eligibility.

Michigan hammered away at the Nittany Lions on the ground, and it will be interesting to see if it chooses to do the same against a defense that has had mixed results against the run. Maryland has a puncher's chance with Big Ten passing leader Taulia Tagovailoa and his talented receiving corps.

Will Michigan stay undefeated against Maryland?

Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh, suspended last week for the balance of the regular season because of the sign-stealing scandal, will try to persuade a judge Friday to lift the ban and allow him to be on the sideline.

The undercard

Nebraska (5-5, 3-4) at Wisconsin (5-5, 3-4), Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET

There was a time when a lot of people thought these two teams would dominate the West Division. The Badgers went to the conference championship game four of the first six years of the East-West setup but have mostly been a shell of their former selves since 2020. Nebraska never did hold up its end.

Now these old-school programs meet a final time as division rivals, and they've been relegated to playing for bowl eligibility. Both teams have new coaches, and both have had injury problems. The Huskers turn over the ball the most of any FBS team and the Badgers have simply underperformed.

Inside the numbers

Wisconsin is 15-0 in home night games against unranked opponents. Nebraska has not allowed a rushing touchdown for five straight games, its longest stretch since 1996.

Michigan State has won in five of its last six visits to Indiana, with the loss coming in overtime in 2016. Indiana's Aaron Casey has five straight games with at least eight tackles and is on pace to post the Hoosiers' first 100-tackle season since Tegray Scales in 2016.

Purdue scored touchdowns on its first four possessions against Minnesota, something that hasn't happened for the Boilermakers in a game since 2004.

Ohio State has won 11 consecutive games over Minnesota, 27 of the last 28 and 39 of the last 41.

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Long shot

Rutgers is listed as a 20.5-point underdog at Penn State, which has won 16 in a row against the Scarlet Knights. Granted, Rutgers' offense didn't get much done in a 22-0 loss to Iowa last week, and Penn State has an even better defense than the Hawkeyes. But the Nittany Lions' home loss to Michigan took an emotional toll, and the Scarlet Knights could capitalize on that and make this one close.

Impact player

Illinois QB Luke Altmyer was named the starter against Iowa after missing last week's overtime win over Indiana because of injury. The decision surprised Illini fans.

Backup John Paddock passed for 507 yards against the Hoosiers a week after coming in cold to lead the winning drive against Wisconsin. Bret Bielema adheres to the axiom that a player shouldn't lose his starting job because of an injury. It will be interesting to see if Altmyer has a short leash.

Reporting by The Associated Press.