BTN.com staff, September 24, 2015

We are getting deeper into the college football season and things are really starting to heat up for the Big Ten. Michigan State jumped to No. 2 in the AP Poll this week, the highest ranking for the Spartans since 1966.  It?s also the first time the Big Ten has had the Top 2 ranked teams in the AP Poll since Nov. 19, 2006, when Michigan was ranked second and Ohio State was ranked first.

There are also a couple of other teams in the conference including Northwestern and Wisconsin who are working their way up the polls after some impressive victories in the last couple of weeks.

That?s what makes this week?s action so critical for the Big Ten.  Twelve teams will be playing their final regular-season non-conference matchups of the year.  A win this weekend could determine whether a team is on the fast track to a postseason appearance while a loss could make the road even tougher the rest of the way.

[ MORE: Week 4 scoreboard | Week 4 previews | Polls: Pick Week 4 winners | Q&A: Jordan Canzeri | Power Rankings | Bowl Projections | Player Rankings | Latest polls | Big Ten standings | Big Ten stats ]

It?s our largest number of games this season on BTN, featuring seven intriguing matchups.  Kicking off a noon ET, Kansas goes up against Rutgers, while Purdue faces Bowling Green, and Michigan State plays Central Michigan.  In a pair of mid-day matchups at 3:30 pm, San Diego State travels to Penn State and Ohio University faces Minnesota.  The nightcaps at 7 p.m. offers two more games, with Ball State playing Northwestern and Hawaii facing Wisconsin.

Use our TV GameFinder lookup tool to find BTN games on your TV. Also, watch all BTN games live on BTN2Go: C. Michigan at Michigan State, Kansas at Rutgers, Bowling Green at Purdue, San Diego State at Penn State, Ohio at Minnesota, Ball State at Northwestern, and Hawaii at Wisconsin.

With all this action, here are five facts you should know once you sit down and tune in to this weekend?s games on BTN.

1. Penn State?s offensive line improvement has been nothing short of amazing.  After allowing an FBS-high 10.0 sacks in their season-opening loss to Temple, the Nittany Lions have not surrendered a single sack in their last two games.  This is the first time Penn State has given up zero sacks in back-to-back games for the first time since the first three contest of the 2010 season.  The line is also opening running lanes for the tailbacks, as the Nittany Lions posted 330 rushing yards in their victory over Rutgers last weekend.  It marked their most yards on the ground in any game for the since posting 338 at Illinois on Oct. 1, 2009.

2. It?s been a mixed bag in the running game for Michigan State so far this season, particularly early in their contests.  They are averaging 6.6 yards per carry in the first quarter; the third-best mark in the conference.  However, in the second quarter they are just rushing for 2.2 yards per attempt; the lowest mark in the conference and ninth-worst mark in the nation.  Michigan State?s answer for their inability to effectively run the ball?  Aaron Burbridge.  He finished with career-highs of 156 receiving yards and three touchdowns in the win against Air Force last Saturday, becoming the first Michigan State player with 150+ yards receiving and 3+ TD in a game since Plaxico Burress (1998-99) had 185 yards and three TD?s against Florida in the 2000 Citrus Bowl.

3. Northwestern?s defense continues to play as one of the best in the nation.  The Wildcats have given up just 16 points in their first three games, their fewest in any season since giving up 16 in their first three contests in 1948.  It is also the fewest any Big Ten team has allowed through their first three games since Iowa gave up eight in their first three contests in 2008.  That was the last time a Big Ten team led the nation in scoring defense going into week four; which Northwestern currently does at 5.3 ppg. The Wildcats have not allowed a touchdown in eleven of twelve quarters this season.

4. To say that Wisconsin has done well at home in non-conference play is an understatement.  The Badgers have won 34 straight home games against non-conference opponents, which is the eighth-longest streak in Division I history.  It?s also the second-longest active streak in the nation, trailing only LSU (43).  The last time Wisconsin lost a non-conference home game was in a 23-5 setback to UNLV on Sep. 13, 2003.  Over its last eight non-conference games played at Camp Randall Stadium, Wisconsin has allowed its opponents to score an average of just 6.3 points per game and have held five of those eight opponents without an offensive touchdown.

5. Purdue?s biggest weapon so far this season has been their ability to force turnovers.  The Boilermakers have forced five fumbles this season, which was tied for the third-most of any FBS team through the first three weeks this season.  In fact, Purdue has forced at least one turnover in each of their last 20 consecutive games, the longest active streak in the nation.  And it might take quite a few of those giveaways to slow down Bowling Green this weekend, as the Falcons are currently second in the FBS averaging 609.3 yards of total offense per game.  Over the last six quarters, Bowling Green has scored 83 points: (42 second-half points at Maryland and 41 against Memphis last weekend).

Check us out on Twitter at @BTNStatsGuys as we will be providing more facts and stats on game day. Enjoy the games!