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Ohio State at Indiana
Game Recap: The Buckeyes survived three turnovers and an inspired effort from Indiana's backup quarterback Zander Diamont to escape Bloomington with the 34-27 victory.
Key Players: Ezekiel Elliott put up a Heisman-worthy performance rushing for 274 yards and 3 touchdowns. Cardale Jones had a mediocre day throwing the ball (18-for 27 for 245 yards and 1 touchdown). Top wideout Michael Thomas had 4 catches for 53 yards and a touchdown and narrowly missed a second score. #2 wideout Jalin Marshall had 6 catches for 110 yards but also lost two costly fumbles. With Jordan Howard hobbled and out for most of the second half, backup Devine Redding rushed 30 times for 45 yards and 2 touchdowns. Top wideouts Simmie Cobbs Jr. (4-68-0) and Ricky Jones (3-35-0) had quiet days.
Injuries: Ohio State lost it's #4 WR Corey Smith for the season to a broken leg. Indiana's star RB Jordan Howard and starting QB Nate Sudfeld are both dealing with ankle injuries. Both are considered short-term injuries, but both Howard and Sudfeld are questionable for next week.
Players to Watch: The Buckeyes are massive home favorites against Maryland next week and Elliott should again have a huge game. Thomas is a good bet to find the end zone every week at wide receiver. Indiana faces a tough Penn State defense with its two best players both questionable.
Purdue AT MICHIGAN STATE
Game Recap: Purdue's comeback attempt came up just short and the Spartans held on for a much closer than expected 24-21 win. MSU blew a 21-0 halfime lead and Purdue had a chance to win or tie on a final drive that reached midfield.
Key Players: Connor Cook threw for just 139 yards and 1 touchdown (which was on a lateral ruled a forward pass). Top wideout Aaron Burbridge had only 1 catch for 9 yards. WR Monty Madaris saw his first action of the season after injuring his thigh during camp and led the team with 47 receiving yards. The Spartans top two running backs, LJ Scott (18-146-2) and Madre London (17-97-0), split carries evenly and both had good days. For Purdue, Markell Jones received the vast majority of the carries (due to starter D.J. Knox nursing a back bruise) and responded with a huge day (22-157-1) that was highlighted by a 68-yard touchdown run.
Injuries: Michigan State was already without both starting tackles and lost top backup Dennis Finley to a knee injury as well. Purdue's top back D.J. Knox is dealing with a back injury and backup Markell Jones could see the majority of the carries again.
Players to Watch: Michigan State has a long streak of producing at least one 100-yard rusher every geame in B1G play and either Scott or London (or both) should keep that alive against Rutgers next week. Scott looks like the player to target. He is a more talented runner than London. Monty Madaris at WR is worth watching going forward for MSU. For Purdue, if Knox is again limited in practice this week, Markell Jones could have a solid day at home against Minnesota.
MICHIGAN at Maryland
Game Recap: Michigan pulled away in the second half and notched a second straight shutout 28-0 with a dominating defensive performance.
Key Players: Maryland did nothing offensively with Caleb Rowe averaging less than 2 yards per passing attempt and throwing 3 interceptions. Top back Brandon Ross rushed 14 times for 44 yards. Michigan quarterback Jake Rudock completed 16-of-32 attempts for 180 yards and a touchdown. Drake Johnson was the leading rusher (13-68-1) and also had a 31-yard touchdown reception. Wide receiver Jehu Chesson (4-41-0) rushed for a 66 yard touchdown and Jake Butt led the team in receiving with 4 catches for 61 yards.
Injuries: Michigan's top running back De'Veon Smith is expected to return to practice this week after missing the Maryland game.
Players to Watch: Maryland has a team total just above 10 at Ohio State in Week 6 and can safely be ignored for fantasy purposes. Michigan faces a stingy Northwestern defense at home and with De'Veon Smith questionable, could resort to a RBBC. Jake Butt is always a solid option at tight end.
NEBRASKA at Illinois
Game Recap: The Cornhuskers suffered their third last-second defeat of the season. They fell to Illinois 14-13, with the Illini scoring 14 unanswered in the 4th quarter to post their first win over Nebraska since 1924
Key Players: Illini quarterback Wes Lunt completed 23-of-45 passes for 245 yards and 2 touchdowns. Top receiver Geronimo Allison had 8 receptions for 91 yards and scored the game-winning touchdown on 4th down (Allison was targeted in the end zone on all four downs). Freshman Ke'Shawn Vaughn rushed 24 times for 98 yards in relief of starter Josh Ferguson. Nebraska starter Tommy Armstrong had a miserable game, completing just 10-of-31 for 105 yards and an interception. He added 38 yards rushing. Top receiver Jordan Westerkamp had 1 catch for minus-1 yards. Top back Terrell Newby rushed for just 15 yards on 5 carries. True freshman running back Devine Ozigbo was the leading rusher with 70 yards on seven carries.
Injuries: Illinois RB Josh Ferguson left in the first quarter with an injured shoulder and is likely to miss the game next week against Iowa.
Players to Watch: It's hard to trust any Nebraska players in Week 6 after the debacle against Illinois. The Illini face a tough road game against a stingy Iowa defense but Geronimo Allison should still see a lot of targets and Ke'Shawn Vaughn will be the only real option in the ground game.
Minnesota AT NORTHWESTERN
Game Recap: Northwestern continued to play dominating defense (only 3 touchdowns allowed all season) in a 27-0 shutout of Minnesota.
Key Players: Clayton Thorson rushed for two short touchdowns and passed for 128 yards. Star running back Justin Jackson rushed 20 times for 120 yards. Minnesota looks like it will use a dual-quarterback system going forward after burning the redshirt of true freshman Demry Croft who will rotate with starter Mitch Leidner. Leidner struggled, completing only 10-for-21 for 72 yards with an interception and a fumble that was returned for a touchdown. Minnesota looks like it will also use a RBBC going forward with Shannon Brooks (10-33) and Rodney Smith (11-32) splitting the rushing load.
Injuries: None.
Players to Watch: It's hard to trust anyone on Minnesota in daily, but with a favorable rushing matchup against Purdue looming, Brooks or Smith may be worth looking at if near-minimum priced. Northwestern travels to Michigan and has a team total of only 14, so nobody on the Wildcats looks like an option for Week 6.
IOWA at Wisconsin
Game Recap: The Hawkeyes forced four turnovers and upset the Badgers on the road 10-6.
Key Players: Jordan Canzeri starred again at tailback for the Hawkeyes. He rushed 26 times for 125 yards against Wisconsin's stout defense. C.J. Beathard had a rough game throwing for just 77 yards and a touchdown on 21 passes. He also turned it over twice. Matt VandeBerg had 6 catches for 61 yards. Wisconsin's RBBC between Dare Ogunbowale (11-28) and Taiwan Deal (15-59) continued with neither player finding much room behind Wisconsin's depleted offensive line. Joel Stave threw for 238 yards on 21-for-38 passing. Alex Erickson (3-30) and Robert Wheelwright (4-33) both had quiet games as well.
Injuries:
Players to Watch: Wisconsin travels to test Nebraska's weak run defense and Deal or Ogunbowale may have some upside. Iowa is a big home favorite against Illinois and Canzeri is a top RB option for Week 6. VandeBerg is a safe (though low upside) option at WR.
Army AT PENN STATE
Game Recap: The Nittany Lions struggled to a closer-than-expected 20-14 win over Army in another rain-soaked home game.
Key Players: Christian Hackenberg managed only 162 passing yards an a touchdown. Nick Scott rushed for 54 yards and a touchdown filling in for injured backs Saquon Barkley and Akeel Lynch. Chris Godwin was the leading receiver with 4 catches for 66 yards.
Injuries: Saquon Barkley is expected back next week but nothing is official and he was not listed on the most recent depth chart.
Players to Watch: If Barkley is available to play and healthy enough to shoulder his usual load, he is a strong option against a horrible Hoosiers run defense in Week 6.