I was nearly a perfect 4-0 but Ohio State and Nebraska went under the posted total of 70 by a few points to keep me at a nice 3-1.  I am now 17-20-1 on the year. After an abysmal start, a winning season is still a real possibility.

The next three weeks will have a full slate of games so with no further ado, here are the week eleven games I’m choosing from: Ohio State (-3.5) at Michigan State (total of 53.5), Wisconsin at Penn State (-8) (total of 53), Illinois at Nebraska (-18) (total of 66), Maryland at Indiana (-2.5) (total of 55), Michigan (-37.5) at Rutgers (total of 47), Northwestern at Iowa (-10) (total of 47.5), Purdue (-11) at Minnesota (total of 58)

Purdue (-11) at Minnesota – 3:30 on ESPN2

The Purdue Boilermakers are playing at a very high-level right now and they could improbably recover from their 0-3 start to land in the Big Ten Championship game. After shellacking the Ohio State Buckeyes, they lost at Michigan State and then returned home to knock off the Iowa Hawkeyes in a very competitive and entertaining contest. I am a bit wary of taking them as double-digit favorites on the road but Minnesota is just not any good. The Gophers were awful last week against Illinois and they would still be winless in the conference if Indiana had not laid down for the better part of three quarters two weeks ago. I think Purdue will be able to score at will against the Gophers weak secondary and I expect the Boilers defense to have some success keeping Minnesota’s offense from doing much. I like Purdue to win big.

Illinois at Nebraska (OVER 66) – Noon on BTN

The Nebraska Cornhuskers are really beginning to turn a corner under Scott Frost. While they are a long way from competing at the level they’d like to, things do look promising for the Huskers to at least return to the top 25 as early as next season. Adrian Martinez is a star in the making and the running game is beginning to perform admirably with Devine Ozigbo and the offensive line making strides. They slowed their tempo somewhat against Ohio State and just barely went under the total. I don’t expect them to do that against the Illinois Fighting Illini and both teams should play pretty fast in Lincoln on Saturday. The Illini had a really nice offensive outing last Saturday and will look to continue that momentum at Nebraska, a defense that is there for the taking and has struggled all season. The Nebraska over has been reliable for the most part and I’ll ride it again.

Michigan at Rutgers (OVER 47) – 3:30 on BTN 

Michigan’s offense has gotten progressively better and I expect them to be able to score at will against Rutgers. I know the Scarlet Knights are unlikely to even think about finding the end zone while this game is still in doubt but if Michigan reaches the 40s (which is my expectation), we would possibly only need a field goal or two from Rutgers to go over the total. Hold your nose and take the over.