Big Ten football weekend review: Week 2

Maryland football continued to impress in Week 2 of the 2019 season, picking up a 63-20 win over then-No. 21 Syracuse.

The Terps are now ranked No. 21 in the country and one of seven ranked teams in the Big Ten alongside No. 6 Ohio State, No. 10 Michigan, No. 13 Penn State, No. 14 Wisconsin, No. 18 Michigan State and No. 19 Iowa.

In case you missed any other Week 2 Big Ten football games, Testudo Times has got you covered. Here’s a short roundup of the rest of the Big Ten.

Biggest surprise: Michigan vs Army

While Michigan got the win in this one, it didn’t come easily. Army led 14-7 at halftime and the Wolverines only managed to score one more touchdown in regulation, forcing the game into overtime.

Both teams scored in overtime, so a second period was needed. Michigan barely squeaked out the 24-21 victory with a field goal. The Wolverines didn’t look great in the game, finishing with less possession time than the Black Knights, allowing them to convert all three of their fourth down attempts and only averaging 4.5 yards per play themselves.

After narrowly missing the College Football Playoffs last season, the Wolverines were expected to be a powerhouse this year. Sure, Army went 11-2 as an independent last season, but given the caliber Jim Harbaugh’s squad is regarded as — the team was ranked No. 7 going into the contest — and its expectations for the season, this shouldn’t have been such a close game.

Statement game: Maryland vs Syracuse

We were hesitant to make Maryland the pick for this game two weeks in a row, but the Terps’ upset of the Orange is simply the obvious choice here.

Though Maryland was favored slightly by betting sites heading into the matchup, most experts picked Syracuse coming out on top. The Orange defense was regarded as one of the best in the country, which was expected to be a challenge for Maryland’s offense. Plus Syracuse won 10 games last season and were ranked No. 21.

Instead, the Terps got off to a blazing fast start, racking up 14 points on offense in the first six minutes of the first quarter. Locksley’s team proved the Orange defense was no match, scoring 63 points in the contest and accounting for 652 yards on offense.

Upset game: Nebraska vs Colorado

Going into this one, Nebraska was No. 25 in the country with high hopes in head coach Scott Frost’s second year. Colorado, on the other hand, is under a new head coach after going 5-7 last season, including a 2-7 record in Pac-12 play.

The Cornhuskers were favored by 4.5 points before the contest and were picked to win it by most experts. And for a while, it looked like they would. They scored 17 points in the first half while allowing nothing to the Buffaloes. But Colorado took the advantage in the second half, outscoring Nebraska 31-14 to extend the game to overtime.

In overtime, the Cornhuskers allowed the Buffaloes to drive down the field for an easy 34-yard field goal. They then went three-and-out once getting the ball back and missed a 48-yard field goal of their own on fourth down to drop to 1-1 on the season.