Penn State vs Wisconsin 2011 College Football Picks

Amid all the scandals on campus, the No.19 Penn State Nittany Lions (9-2, 6-1 Big Ten) will have to focus on a week 13 college football picks showdown against No.16 Wisconsin (9-2, 5-2 Big Ten). The winner of this game will represent the Leaders Division in the first ever Big Ten Championship Game, so expect both programs to bring their ‘A’ game on Saturday at 3:30pm ET on ESPN. Most college football experts thought that the Badgers wouldn’t be in a position where they need to win their final game of the year in order to lock up the division. For a while, the Badgers were coasting but a few hiccups to Michigan State and Nebraska allowed the Nittany Lions to jump ahead of them for the Leaders Division lead.

Get $50 of Free Picks Now No Obligation! Wisconsin is listed as a 14.5-point favorite in this game and the reason being that college football bettors don’t trust Penn State to keep up with the Badgers on offense. The Nittany Lions will have to put together their most productive performance of the season on Saturday because we all know how explosive the Badgers’ offense can be. In their last three games, Wisconsin has outscored its opponents 132-47 and although Penn State is far more talented than Wisconsin’s last three victims, I’m taking Wisconsin to cover that margin at Camp Randall Stadium this weekend.

A third loss for either of these teams would be a disaster and would remove all chances of a BCS bowl. Penn State could end up dropping out of the Top 25 altogether if they lose this game, depending on some of the other results from this weekend’s college football action. The key matchup to watch in this game will be Wisconsin’s tenth-ranked rushing attack in the nation against Penn State’s 34th ranked run defense. The Nittany Lions have to stop the run because if they don’t, Matthew McGloin’s options will be limited and Penn State already has a hard time scoring points as is. If the Badgers can set the tempo and control the clock, then the Nittany Lions won’t stand a chance straight up or against the spread.