Week 10 Big Ten West Rooting Guide for Wisconsin Football Fans

The loss to Ohio State last week knocked the Wisconsin football team back out of the Big Ten West lead again. Technically they are in a four-way tie at the top of the division, but with tiebreakers, they are behind Minnesota and Iowa. The loss to Iowa a few weeks ago hurts, but Minnesota and Nebraska are still on the schedule for the Wisconsin Badgers, which gives them a chance to own any tie-breakers over them.

While it looks like the Hawkeyes seemingly have a pretty easy schedule remaining, it’s completely possible for them to lose some close, low-scoring games with the way their offense is playing.

Here’s a look at the updated standings heading into this week’s slate of games:

Minnesota – 5-3 (3-2)
Iowa – 6-2 (3-2)
Wisconsin – 5-3 (3-2)
Nebraska – 5-3 (3-2)
Northwestern – 4-4 (2-3)
Purdue – 2-6 (1-4)
Illinois – 3-5 (1-4)

So with these standings in mind, here are this week’s matchups and which winners would benefit the Wisconsin football team the most.

Who Should Wisconsin Football Fans Cheer for in Week 10?

Big Ten West teams on a bye this week: none

Wisconsin @ Indiana – 11:00 AM – BTN

The Badgers need to win out. This is the must-win game since the Hoosiers are at the bottom of the conference. A loss to the worst team in the conference won’t bode well for their chances to play in Indianapolis and a chance for the Big Ten title. Wisconsin enters the game as 9.5-point favorites on the road, despite some injuries at key positions.

Who to cheer for: Wisconsin

Nebraska @ Michigan State – 11:00 AM – FS1

Can Michigan State please do something right for once? They’ve played both Iowa and Minnesota and lost both games. Nebraska is their final Big Ten crossover game. If they can take the Huskers, it would be greatly appreciated so the top of the West would thin out a bit. Right now, the Spartans are underdogs — at home. Hopefully, an upset is brewing in East Lansing.

Who to cheer for: Michigan State

Illinois @ Minnesota – 2:30 PM – BTN

The Wisconsin football team already has a win over Illinois, who isn’t much of a threat to win the division. So we are cheering hard for the Illini. Any Minnesota loss is a good loss. Knocking the Gophers down in the standings is what’s important here. The Gophers enter the game as just a 1.5-point favorite at home.

Who to cheer for: Illinois

Iowa vs. Northwestern (at Wrigley Field) – 2:30 pm – Peacock

I could see this game getting ugly. Northwestern has been better than expected and Iowa’s offense is still ugly. A game at Wrigley Field in November is perfect for a Big Ten football environment. The Wildcats shocking the Hawkeyes would be huge for the Wisconsin Badgers. The Hawkeyes enter the game as 5-point favorites on the ‘neutral’ field.

Who to cheer for: Northwestern

Purdue @ Michigan – 6:30 pm – Peacock

This game doesn’t really matter. If we are worried about Purdue sneaking up the standings (I’m not), then you’ll want Michigan to win. But it’s always fun to have some chaos at the top of the rankings. And with the whole sign-stealing scandal, a huge upset couldn’t happen to a better team. With Wisconsin already owning the tie-breaker over the Boilermakers, it doesn’t really matter who wins this game.

Who to cheer for: Dealer’s Choice

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