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Week 8 games of interest to Wisconsin Football fans

By Sam Land

BLOOMINGTON, IN - OCTOBER 20: Trace McSorley #9 of the Penn State Nittany Lions throws a pass in the first quarter of the game against the Indiana Hoosiers at Memorial Stadium on October 20, 2018 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
BLOOMINGTON, IN - OCTOBER 20: Trace McSorley #9 of the Penn State Nittany Lions throws a pass in the first quarter of the game against the Indiana Hoosiers at Memorial Stadium on October 20, 2018 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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Purdue at Michigan State – 12:00 p.m. ET

It’s unfortunate that this game will be going on at the same time as Wisconsin’s, as it is a matchup Badger fans would ideally like to catch considering Purdue’s rising position in a tight Big Ten West race that also includes Wisconsin, Northwestern, and Iowa. All four programs have just one conference loss, which should make for a fascinating final few weeks of the season.

Purdue and Michigan State are teams that are trending in opposite directions.

After starting the season 0-3, the Boilermakers now have ripped off four straight wins, including last week’s shocking 49-20 blowout over then No. 2 Ohio State, one of the biggest wins in the history of the program.

The Spartans, on the other hand, look bad right now. At 4-3, they are out of the Big Ten East race and are coming off an ugly 21-7 loss against Michigan last weekend in which they were only able to muster 94 yards of total offense. To make matters worse, star receiver Felton Davis was carted off the field with a season-ending ACL injury.

So long as Purdue succeeds at staying grounded after last week’s exhilarating triumph and does not take Michigan State for granted, they should have a great shot at picking up another big win. The Spartans and their 108th-ranked pass defense look to be in major trouble against a Boilermaker passing attack that ranks 11th in the nation behind the emergence of quarterback David Blough over the last few games. I’m not sure this Spartan offense will be able to keep up on the scoreboard.