Illinois (at) Michigan, noon Saturday, ESPN Michigan (5-3, 1-3 Big Ten) hopes to end its slide, but it won’t be easy. The Wolverines play an Illinois team that has won back-to-back games, beating Purdue 44-10 last Saturday. Quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase lead the Fighting Illini offense last Saturday, throwing for 195 yards and four touchdown while rushing for 118. U-M (5-3, 1-3 MAC) comes off a 41-31 loss against Penn State and, most importantly, third consecutive loss. Quarterback Denard Robinson had 381 total yards and three touchdowns, but Illinois was just too much for the Wolverines’ defense.

Minnesota (at) Michigan State, noon Saturday, Big Ten Network Minnesota (1-8, 0-5 Big Ten) is having a season to forget, losing its eighth consecutive game to Ohio State 52-10 last weekend. Running back DeLeon Eskridge provided the Golden Gophers only touchdown, which came courtesy of a seven yard run. Their only other scoring came from Eric Ellestad, who kicked a 33-yard field goal. Michigan State (8-1, 4-1 Big Ten) lost its first game of the season last week against Iowa, 37-6. Quarterback Kirk Cousins threw for just one touchdown and three interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown. The Spartans also struggled on the ground, amassing just 31 total yards.

Akron (at) Ball State, 1 p.m. Saturday Akron (0-9, 0-5 MAC) is still seeking its first win of the season as they take on a struggling Ball State (2-7, 1-4 MAC) team. The Zips failed to produce any offense during last week’s 30-0 shutout loss against Temple. Akron quarterback Patrick Nicely struggled throwing the ball and running the ball, finishing the game with negative rushing yards. Ball State hasn’t won a game since its Oct. 2 win at CMU. Quarterback Keith Wenning had two touchdowns, one throwing and one passing, in their 33-14 loss against Kent State.

Temple (at) Kent State, 2 p.m. Saturday Temple (7-2, 4-1 MAC) made winning look as easy as it beat Akron 30-0 to win its third consecutive game. Brandon McManus’ 27-yard field goal with six minutes left in the first quarter gave the Owls a 3-0 lead, and they never looked back. Mike Gerardi, Rod Streater and Bernard Pierce each scored a touchdown, providing most of the team’s offense. A 33-14 victory against Ball State gave Kent State (4-4, 3-2 MAC) back-to-back wins for the first time this season. Quarterbacks Spencer Keith and Sam Kirkland each had a passing touchdown while running back Dri Archer scored the team’s only touchdown.

Toledo (at) Northern Illinois, 7:00 p.m. Tuesday, ESPN2 Toledo (6-3, 5-0 MAC) will battle Northern Illinois for sole possession of first place in the MAC West. The Rockets won their third consecutive game last weekend, beating Eastern Michigan 42-7. UT quarterback Terrance Owens threw for 234 yards and four touchdowns in the win. NIU (7-2, 5-0 MAC) enters Tuesday’s game with six consecutive wins. Their last win came courtesy of a fourth quarter comeback lead by Chandler Harnish, who threw a 21-yard pass to Nathan Palmer for a touchdown, giving the Huskies a 28-21 lead and win against Western Michigan. Harnish finished the day with two touchdowns total.

Miami (at) Bowling Green, 8:00 p.m. Wednesday, ESPN2 Miami (5-4, 4-1 MAC) is tied with Temple and Ohio for first place in the MAC East. Thus far, Miami has struggled in non conference games but have played very well in the MAC. Zac Dysert played pretty well offensively scoring two touchdowns, but still made mistakes throwing two interceptions. Bowling Green (2-7, 1-4 MAC) won their first conference game, and snapped their five game losing streak beating Central Michigan 17-14 last weekend. After going down 14-10 early in the fourth quarter, Jordan Hopgood ran the ball one yard for a touchdown with 21 seconds left to play, giving BGSU a 17-14 lead, which became the final score.