Ohio State football KYEOYE - How the Bucks' opponents fared, Week 12

The Buckeyes look to be headed for a showdown with Michigan State in Indianapolis in early December, but there is still plenty left to play for for some of the 2013 Ohio State opponents. Buffalo is trying to make the MAC Championship game while San Diego State, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Michigan are all trying to finish the season strong to improve their bowl positioning.

Buffalo (7-3), LOSS at Toledo (51-41), NEXT GAME: at Miami (OH), Tuesday 8:00 PM EST

Tuesday night #MACTION saw Buffalo lose for the first time this season to a team that wasn't undefeated. The only losses that the Bulls had suffered previously were to Ohio State and Baylor in the first two weeks of the season. Toledo scored early and often on the Bulls, keeping things interesting in not only the MAC East, but the West as well. The Tuesday ngiht game was decided pretty early, with Toledo's Terrance Owens hitting Bernard Reedy on a 59-yard pass with only 2:35 gone in the first quarter, and from there on it was all Rockets. Toledo jumped out to a 38-0 lead at halftime, and while Buffalo was able to eventually pull within 15 points, they never got closer. Out of necessity Joe Licata set a school record with 497 yards passing, becoming the first Buffalo QB since 2001 to throw for over 300 yards. That wasn't the only school record that was set in defeat, as Alex Neutz hauled in his 30th touchdown reception during his Buffalo career. With the Bulls being down so much so early they didn't get to properly utilize running back Branden Oliver, but he still found a way to rush for 102 yards, making it six straight games over 100 yards rushing for the running back.

The Bulls will now head to Oxford on Tuesday for a game wtih the 0-10 Redhawks. The Bulls will be looking to avoid two losses in a row in the MAC, and handing over control in the MAC East to Bowling Green. Buffalo wlll take on Bowling Green in the regular season finale, in a matchup that is looking like it will decide the representative in the MAC Championship Game from the East Division.

San Diego State (6-4), WIN at Hawaii (28-21 OT), NEXT GAME: vs. Boise State, Saturday 10:30 PM EST

San Diego State has made a habit of going beyond the 60 minutes of game time this year, heading to overtime for the third time this season in Saturday night's win over Hawaii. Adam Muema's 2-yard TD run in overtime capped off a 24 carry, 163 yard day for the running back. The Aztec defense stood strong after and didn't allow Hawaii to score on their only possession of overtime, sending Hawaii to 0-10 on the season. San Diego State was trailing 21-14 in the 4th quarter, but went on a 82 yard drive that ended with a Chad Young 14-yard run to tie the game up at 21 with 2:34 left. Hawaii's Joey Iosefa carried the ball 37 times for 150 yards, but it wasn't enough for Hawaii to earn their first win of the season. Former Ohio State quarterback Taylor Graham threw one pass in the game, but it fell incomplete on the final play of the fourth quarter from the 48-yard line.

After starting the season 0-3, San Diego State is now bowl eligible. Next up for the Aztecs will be a home showdown with Boise State on Saturday night. With 958 rushing yards on the year, Muema will be looking to hit the 1,000 yard mark in the final home game of the season for the Aztecs.

California (1-10), LOSS at Colorado (41-24), NEXT GAME: at #10 Stanford, Saturday 4:00 PM EST

Something had to give in the matchup of the two cellar dwellers in the Pac-12 this year. Colorado had come into Saturday's game with a 14-game losing streak in the Pac-12, last beating Washington State 35-34 in September of last season. The victory now hands the crown of longest active Pac-12 losing streak to California, with the Golden Bears losing their last 13 games within the conference. California was able to get 107 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries from Brandon Bigelow, but they didn't get much else from their offense. The defense wasn't able to keep Colorado's Sefo Liufau and Paul Richardson in check, with Liufau passing for a career-high 364 yards, and Richardson tying a school record with 11 catches in the game.

California' disappointing first season under Sonny Dykes will come to an end on Saturday against Stanford. The "Bear Raid" was expected to make a little noise in the Pac-12, but the Golden Bears haven't been able to defeat a FBS team this season. It looks like Califronia will be heading into the 2014 season riding a 14-game losing streak in the conference, unless a huge upset happens in Palo Alto.

#16 Wisconsin (8-2), WIN vs. Indiana (51-3), NEXT GAME: at Minnesota, Saturday 3:30 PM EST

Jump started by James White's school record 93-yard touchdown run just over a minute into the game, Wisconsin continued their recent domination of Indiana on Saturday. After setting a school record last year against the Hoosiers with 564 yards rushing, the Badgers only were able to rush for 554 yards this year. White was one of four Badgers to rush for at least 85 yards in the game, leading the way with 205 yards on 20 carries in the game. Melvin Gordon ran 13 times for 146 yards, and Jared Abbrederis used touchdown runs of 49 yards and 32 yards to gain 86 yards on his three carries. The game was never in doubt for the Badgers, as they led 28-0 at the end of the first quarter, and were able to hold the high scoring Indiana offense to only 224 total yards.

While a Buckeye win this Saturday will erase any chance that Wisconsin has of playing in the Big Ten Championship Game, the Badgers still have a tough game on Saturday when they travel to Minnesota. While it doesn't look like it'll be the Rose Bowl like the last few years, a win on Saturday against the Golden Gophers would almost certainly solidify a New Years Day bowl game for the Badgers.

Northwestern (4-6), LOSS vs. Michigan (27-19 3OT), NEXT GAME: vs. #13 Michigan State, Saturday 12:00 PM EST

During their six-game losing streak Northwestern is finding creative ways to lose, dropping Saturday's game in triple overtime to the the Wolverines. Northwestern led Michigan 9-3 after three quarters, but two field goals from the Wolverines sent the game to overtime. The Wildcats had a chance to win in the second overtime after a Jeff Budzien FG, but Northwestern wasn't able to hold the lead and allowed Michigan to answer with a field goal to force the final overtime. The Wildcats weren't able to get much going on offense throughout the game, only totaling just over 320 yards of total offense. Quarterback Kain Colter was the leading rusher for Northwestern in the game, carrying 19 times for 78 yards and scoring the only touchdown that Northwestern was able to put up during the game.

After a 4-0 start to the season, Northwestern has now lost every game that they have played since they started conference play in early October against Ohio State. The losing streak might get a little longer this week with a game against Michigan State up next for Pat Fitzgerald's team.

Iowa (6-4), BYE WEEK, NEXT GAME: vs. Michigan, Saturday 12:00 PM EST

After becoming bowl eligible with a win over Purdue in their previous game, Iowa was able to take the week off to gear up for their final two games of the regular season. The Hawkeyes will take on Michigan in Iowa City this Saturday before heading to Lincoln the day after Thanksgiving to square off against Nebraska.

Penn State (6-4), WIN vs. Purdue (45-21), NEXT GAME: vs. Nebraska, Saturday 3:30 PM EST

Penn State jumped out to a 14-0 lead after the first quarter against Purdue, and while the Boilermakers hung around for a little while, Penn State scored the last 17 points of the game to deliver the final blow to Darrell Hazell's team. Zach Zwinak rushed for 149 yards and three scores as Penn State rushed for 289 yards against the Purdue defense. Allen Robinson caught eight passes for 98 yards, breaking his own single-season school record for catches. Now Robinson has 81 catches this season with two games left, besting the 77 catches that he was able to haul in last year.

For the second straight season since NCAA sanctions were handed down Penn State has at least hit the .500 mark, and will look to build on that in the home finale against Nebraska. While it will be a few years before Christian Hackenberg's senior day, he'll be trying to send the seniors now playing for the Nittany Lions out on top.

Purdue (1-9), LOSS at Penn State (45-21), NEXT GAME: vs. illinois, Saturday 12:00 PM EST

In a season full of struggle for the Boilermakers, they did at least score as many points on Saturday as they did in their first four Big Ten games this season. The Boilermakers should a little bit of fight against Penn State. Down 28-7 late in the second quarter, Raheem Mostert took a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown, making it 28-14 heading into halftime. The Boilermakers then came out after halftime and pulled within a touchdown on a Danny Etling 11-yard touchdown run. That was as close as Purdue would get though, with Penn State scoring the final 17 points to close out the game. While Etling was able to throw for 223 yards, the running game for the Boilermakers was non-existent, only able to account for 41 yards in the game.

Next up for Purdue will be a home game against Illinois on Saturday before they close out the season in the battle for the Old Oaken Bucket next week in the season finale against Indiana. Purdue has yet to defeat a FBS team this year, with their only win coming against Indiana State early in the season.

Illinois (3-7), LOSS vs. #3 Ohio State (60-35), NEXT GAME: at Purdue, Saturday 12:00 PM EST

Illinois showed some fight after falling into a early 28-0 hole against Ohio State, but it wasn't enough to keep the Fighting Illini from losing their 20th straight game in the Big Ten. You can find a more in-depth recap of Saturday's 60-35 Ohio State win over Illinois here, while all the best GIFs from the game can be found here. A 67-yard Y'Angelo Bennett punt return got Illinois on the board for the first time in the game, and they actually close the gap to 44-29 early in the fourth quarter before a pair of Carlos Hyde long TD runs finally put Illinois away.

Tim Beckham has to feel good about the chances of his team ending their long conference losing streak when they head to Purdue this Saturday. With Nathan Scheelhaase behind center against the struggling Boilermakers, Beckham might be able to finally earn his first win in the Big Ten as head coach of Illinois.

Indiana (4-6), LOSS at #16 Wisconsin (51-3), NEXT GAME: at #3 Ohio State, Saturday 3:30 PM EST

The Hoosiers have had no answer for the Badgers the last few years, losing the last four games by a combined score of 255-44. A week after putting up over 750 yards of offense against Illinois, the Hoosiers were only able to muster 224 yards against the Badgers. The game was pretty much over before it started, with James White running 93 yards for a touchdown with just over a minute gone in the game. Things only got worse for Indiana, and the first quarter ended with a 28-0 deficit for the Hoosiers.

Indiana looks like they'll come up just short of being bowl eligible this year, as they are heavy underdogs in Saturday's game against Ohio State. After being run over by Wisconsin's rushing attack on Saturday, they'll now have to try and figure out a plan on how to slow down Ohio State's offense. Judging by the massive chunks of yardage that Indiana has given up so far this season, it looks like it could be a long day on Saturday for Kevin Wilson's team.

Michigan (7-3), WIN at Northwestern (27-19 3OT), NEXT GAME: at Iowa, Saturday 12:00 PM EST

The Wolverines used two Brendan Gibbons field goals in the fourth quarter to force overtime, and eventually outlasted Northwestern in Evanston. After two straight games gaining negative rushing yards, Michigan was able to gain positive yardage, rushing for 139 yards on Saturday. The capper for Michigan was a Devin Gardner 5-yard touchdown run in the third overtime. The Wolverines were able to hold on defense and end a two-game losing streak. Not only did Gardner run for a touchdown, but he threw for another one in overtime, hitting Jake Butt in the first overtime before Northwestern answered with a TD of their own. Gardner passed for 226 yards on the day, hitting Jeremy Gallon 10 times for 115 yards.

Brady Hoke's team will again hit the road this week, heading to Iowa City before finishing up at home against Ohio State. While Michigan's hopes of winning the Legends Division are done, they still are trying to finish up strong for purposes of bowl positioning.