12 Ohio State at 24 Northwestern Preview

Who would have thought that both Ohio State and Northwestern would be ranked in the AP Top 25 coming into this contest?

Four years ago, Northwestern upset then-No.6 Ohio State in Evanston, and the Wildcats will be looking to do the same in 2008. They come into this game buoyed by an interception-fueled victory over Minnesota last week.

C.J. Bacher is likely to start for Northwestern, and he hasn't had much success against the Buckeyes. There is, however, one problem that could face Ohio State in this game--Mike Kafka.

Kafka was impressive against Minnesota and is a dual run-pass threat for the Wildcats. The thing is, this is the same Minnesota team that Ohio State throttled before letting up late to make the final score closer than what the game really was. Ohio State won 34-21.

Ohio State comes off a loss to Penn State in which the Buckeyes had control late before Terrelle Pryor fumbled while attempting to try and put the game away. I can't say that I blame him for his effort, but his poor attitude after the game is something he'll need to discard. I will have to say that I love how Pryor ripped on ESPN's Mark May earlier this year.

The Buckeyes' defense has been steadily improving and it beat up on Bacher the last time Ohio State was in Evanston in 2006. It'll need to clamp down on both Bacher and Kafka.

With Tyrell Sutton out, the Buckeyes' lone running threat will probably be from Kafka. I look for this to still be a tough game. The Buckeyes will need to successfully navigate the three remaining tests if they're to have any chance at a BCS bowl.

They'll also need to be rooting for Oklahoma State to upset Texas Tech or LSU to upset 'Bama this week, too.

Images courtesy the athletic departments of The Ohio State University and Northwestern University.