Michigan defeats Purdue, 16-14; Badgers are 8-0
ASSOCIATED PRESS
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Freshman Michael Hart rushed for 206 yards and Garrett Rivas hit a 35-yard field goal with 2:45 to go to lift No. 13 Michigan to a 16-14 win over No. 12 Purdue on Saturday.
Hart broke Ricky Powers' record for rushing yards by a Michigan freshman and also caught a touchdown pass for the Wolverines (7-1, 5-0 Big Ten).
The scene was all too familiar for Purdue (5-2, 2-2), which again had a costly fumble late to lose its second game in a row after starting the season with five straight wins for the first time since 1945.
After Rivas' field goal, Purdue quarterback Kyle Orton hit receiver Dorien Bryant on a crossing pattern that moved the Boilermakers into Michigan territory.
But Michigan defensive back Markus Curry sent Bryant flying with a low hit and Ernest Shazor hit him high, forcing a fumble that Leon Hall recovered to seal the win. The play was reviewed by replay officials and the play stood as called.
Rivas was shaky all day, missing a 38-yarder in the third and also having a 32-yarder blocked by Bobby Iwuchukwu in the fourth. But he stepped in and calmly drilled the biggest kick of the day to give the Wolverines their sixth straight win, and fourth in a row over Purdue.
While Rivas was the hero, Hart was the workhorse. A week after going for 234 yards against Illinois, Hart used his speed and power to tear up Purdue's run defense.
Orton, meanwhile, continued to struggle against Michigan and can probably forget about winning the Heisman Trophy. The senior was 14-for-30 for 213 yards, a touchdown and an interception.
Running back Brandon Jones blew past linebacker Scott McClintock to haul in a 63-yard TD pass to give Purdue a 14-10 lead early in the third.
But Michigan rode Hart right back into the game.
Hart had dazzling runs of 28 and 33 yards to set up a 25-yard field goal by Rivas to make the score 14-13.
He then rushed for 28 yards on Michigan's game-winning drive.
Wisconsin 24, Northwestern 12
MADISON, Wis. -- Anthony Davis rushed for two touchdowns and No. 6 Wisconsin won with defensive end Erasmus James and his pass-rushing partner Jonathan Welsh on the sideline.
Both were out with ankle injuries but that didn't prevent the Badgers from going 8-0 for just the fourth time in the program's 115-year history.
The Badgers (5-0 Big Ten) turned to subs Joe Monty, Justin Ostrowski and Jamal Cooper to close off the edges and prevent Northwestern's mobile quarterback Brett Basanez from hurting them with his trademark rollouts and bootlegs.
For most of the game, he didn't hurt them with his arm, either. Basanez was just 5-of-18 for 34 yards in the first half, as the Wildcats fell behind 17-0 before finally finding a rhythm with two second-half scoring drives.
Northwestern (3-4, 2-2) didn't back up their coach's words after he proclaimed last week that the Wildcats, who hadn't lost to Wisconsin since 1999, were conference title contenders.
Minnesota 45, Illinois 0
MINNEAPOLIS -- Marion Barber III ran for two touchdowns and threw for another, helping Minnesota rebound from consecutive devastating defeats.
Barber gained 138 yards on 11 carries for the Gophers (6-2, 3-2), the nation's third-leading rushing team whose Big Ten title hopes were crushed by losses at Michigan (27-24) and Michigan State (51-17).
The Illini (2-6, 0-5) were held to 72 yards rushing and dropped their 13th straight Big Ten game.
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