The pecking order in the Big Ten is established. It’s Ohio State, Oregon, then everybody else. Now we just go through the motions until the inevitable happens.
Saturday, October 4
The Best
No. 20 Michigan vs Wisconsin 12:00 PM ET,
FOX | Michigan –17.5 ChatGPT: The Wolverines enter after a bye and get the Badgers at home. Michigan’s trenches and tempo should overwhelm Wisconsin if they’re shaky at QB. Eli: Yeah Wisconsin’s getting worked. ChatGPT Prediction: Michigan 31–13 Eli Prediction: Michigan 42, Wisconsin 0
No. 22 Illinois at Purdue
12:00 PM ET, BTN | Illinois -8.5
ChatGPT: A Big Ten pivot. Purdue’s defense is better than expected; Illinois pushes through air and gaps. Could be punchy.
Eli: For whatever reason Purdue gives Illinois everything it can handle every season, so I don’t see why this year it’ll be any different.
ChatGPT Prediction: Illinois 27–24
Eli Prediction: Illinois 20, Purdue 17
No. 7 Penn State at UCLA
3:30 PM ET, CBS | Penn State -24.5
ChatGPT: Cross-country test for PSU. If UCLA can slow tempo and make Penn State one-dimensional, it’s a fight. But PSU’s physicality wins late.
Eli: Oh ChatGPT. Penn State has a better chance at losing outright than they do being the more physical team.
ChatGPT Prediction: PSU 34–21
Minnesota at No. 1 Ohio State
7:30 PM ET, NBC | Ohio State -23.5
ChatGPT: Big stage under the lights. OSU’s defense is punishing; Gophers need a clean offensive night to stay in it.
Eli: Minnesota is the Westiest team to ever West, so their whole strategy is going to be to do just enough to not get blown out.
ChatGPT Prediction: Ohio State 31–14
Eli Prediction: Ohio State 31, Minnesota 10
The Rest
ULM at Northwestern
3:30 PM ET, BTN | Northwestern –10.5
ChatGPT: Wildcats against an FCS-level foe. Expect dominance, but don’t sleep on a turnover or weird special teams swing.
Eli: ChatGPT, Louisiana-Monroe is FBS. Still, they should cruise.
ChatGPT Prediction: Northwestern 42–10
Eli Prediction: Northwestern 34, Luoisiana-Monroe 7
Washington at Maryland
3:30 PM ET, BTN | Washington -5.5
ChatGPT: Terps at home versus incoming pass rush. Washington’s aerial game is legit; Maryland needs to own the LOS.
Eli: Washington looked anemic a week ago, but it was against the No. 1 team in the country. What will they look like against a Maryland team that’s way better than we all thought, though it’s now October?
ChatGPT Prediction: Washington 28–20
Eli Prediction: Maryland 24, Washington 20
Michigan State at Nebraska
4:00 PM ET, FS1 |Nebraska -12.5
ChatGPT: Midday grind match. Huskers at home, MSU road test. If MSU can crack the run game early, this stays interesting.
Eli: Why are all these games in the afternoon window WTF?
ChatGPT Prediction: Nebraska 27–23
Eli Prediction: Nebraska 28, Michigan State 20
Final Thoughts
The Best: Michigan–Wisconsin headlines, followed by Illinois–Purdue and PSU–UCLA in marquee slots.
Middle Tier: Nebraska–MSU and OSU–Minnesota fill important conference games.
The Rest: Northwestern should dominate ULM; Washington–Maryland is a sneaky one to watch.
