Welcome to week seven’s recap of all things Big Ten football, proudly sponsored by all cheese products coming from the state of Wisconsin.

Ohio State makes it a short stay at #1 as they are manhandled by Wisconsin, lose 31-18
After getting to watch this entire game, I can now say without any hesitation that Ohio State is one of the most overrated teams in the nation. Their special teams have been suspect all year and it was proven once again on the opening kickoff which was taken back for a touchdown. Also, if you put a decent defense across the line from Terrelle Pryor, he becomes much less effective than he is against, say, Indiana or Marshall. He only completed fifty percent of his passes for a measly 156 yards with an interception and was held to 56 yards on the ground.

Much of that was due to the excellent defensive effort by Wisconsin defensive end J.J. Watt who had two sacks but put pressure on Pryor most of the game. The two-headed monster of John Clay and James White was superb again, combining for 179 yards and three touchdowns (on a side note, “Hey Baby” is a great tradition, but I’d be willing to switch to “Jump Around” anytime).

Michigan State silences Illinois, goes to 7-0
If someone would’ve said in August that at after seven games Michigan State would be one of two teams to control their own destiny in the Big Ten, most people would’ve bet their mortgages to make a quick buck. But here we are and the Spartans are off to their best start since 1966.

While the first half was shaky at best, the Michigan State offense came alive behind quarterback Kirk Cousins in the second half and the defense stayed solid in the 26-6 win. The victory put Sparty at number seven in the initial BCS rankings and the outlook is good with their remaining schedule being away games against Northwestern, Iowa, and Penn State and home games against Purdue and Minnesota. If they can get past the Hawkeyes, a perfect season is definitely not out of the question for Coach Mark D’Antonio and company.

Iowa defeats Michigan 38-28 as Denard Robinson leaves another game due to injury
Iowa is in the same boat as Michigan State with controlling their own destiny in the Big Ten, which makes their October 30 matchup the new must-see conference game. The good half of Ricky Stanzi showed up Saturday, passing for 248 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. All three of the touchdowns were thrown to Derrell Johnson-Koulianos, who surpassed his touchdown total from last year all in one game. Denard Robinson left with a shoulder injury and Tate Forcier came in to pass for 236 yards. Rich-Rod said after the game that Robinson is still the starter and should be ready for Penn State after the bye week.

Purdue knocks off Minnesota 28-17 dropping the Gophers to 1-6
With the loss on Saturday, it was announced that Minnesota head coach Tim Brewster was fired. Now the question is, how does this team play next week against the Nittany Lions: Do they salvage the season with a renewed fire or pack it in?

Indiana rallies to defeat Arkansas State, 36-34
I thought we were done with these games?