Point Spreads: Closing Lines on Big Ten Games Shifting Quite a Bit

There are only four games left on the Big Ten schedule for Saturday, but there are things you should know about what's going on with the point spreads. They're on the move.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Because of two COVID-19 related cancelations,  there are only four Big Ten games left on the schedule Saturday. And there's been plenty of movement in the point spreads as game time approaches.

Here are the closing point spreads on Saturday morning for all of the Big Ten games this today

Maryland at Indiana

• GAMETIME: Noon ET
• TV: ESPN2
• RECORDS: Indiana (4-1); Maryland (2-1)
• LAST WEEK: Indiana lost to Ohio State 42-35; Maryland did not play (COVID-19)
• OPENING LINE: Indiana minus-14.5
• CLOSING LINE: Indiana minus-12
• THE SKINNY: Indiana This line has bounced around a bit, dropping as low as 11 points on Thursday. The lost four games in this series have all been one-score games, so something has to give here. Tom Brew's prediction: CLICK HERE

Penn State at Michigan

• GAMETIME: Noon ET
• TV: ABC
• RECORDS: Penn State (0-5); Michigan (2-3)
• LAST WEEK: Penn State lost to Iowa 41-21; Michigan beat Rutgers 48-42 in OT.
• OPENING LINE: Michigan minus-3.5
• CLOSING LINE: Michigan minus-1
• THE SKINNY: Michigan has been favored in every game but one this season, which is amazing considering how horrible the Wolverines have played all year. They were lucky to escape Rutgers with a win on Saturday night. Thankfully, the opponent is Penn State, who might be one of the biggest disappointments in college football history. They were preseason No. 8 in the AP poll and No. 7 among the coaches, but have lost five straight, the first time in program history that it's ever happened. That dates back to 1887, folks. This line is moving toward Penn State, but both of these teams are hard to figure.

Northwestern at Michigan State

• GAMETIME: 3:30 p.m. ET
• TV: ESPN2
• RECORDS: Northwestern (5-0); Michigan State (1-3)
• LAST WEEK: Northwestern beat Wisconsin 17-7; Michigan State did not play (COVID-19 at Maryland).
• OPENING LINE: Northwestern minus-11.5
• CLOSING LINE: Northwestern minus-13.5
• THE SKINNY: Northwestern's dream season continued last weekend, and they've gone from 3-9 last year to 5-0 this season. Michigan State had last week off, and the Spartans needed it. They were smashed by Iowa (49-7) and Indiana (24-0) the previous two weeks. It's going to be interesting to see if Michigan State can score at all on that stingy defense. Walter Ego has a little lean on this game. CLICK HERE

Rutgers at Purdue

• GAMETIME: 4 p.m. ET
• TV: Fox Sports 1
• RECORDS: Rutgers (1-4); Purdue (2-2)
• LAST WEEK: Rutgers lost to Michigan 48-42 in OT; Purdue lost to Minnesota 34-31.
• OPENING LINE: Purdue minus-10.5
• CLOSING LINE; Purdue minus-12
• THE SKINNY: Purdue got robbed on a horrible call in last Friday's loss to Minnesota, but there's plenty of blame to go around on their end, too, most notably the two missed field goals. Jack Plummer was good at quarterback, and the Boilers desperately a win here to snap that two-game losing streak. Rutgers really deserved to beat Michigan last weekend, and they will show up and play hard this week, too. That's a lot of points for this matchup. Walter Ego has an opinion on this one, too. CLICK HERE

Ohio State at Illinois

• GAMETIME: CANCELED
• TV: FOX Sports 1
• RECORDS: Ohio State (4-0); Illinois (2-3)
• LAST WEEK: Ohio State beat Indiana 42-35; Illinois beat Nebraska 41-23.
• OPENING LINE: Ohio State minus-28.5
• THE SKINNY: Illinois played through all of their COVID issues and then had the rug pulled out from under them late Friday night when Ohio State to cancel.

Minnesota at Wisconsin

• GAMETIME: CANCELED
• TV: Big Ten Network
• RECORDS: Minnesota (2-3); Wisconsin (2-1)
• LAST WEEK: Minnesota beat Purdue 34-31; Wisconsin lost to Northwestern 17-7.
• OPENING LINE: Wisconsin minus-21.5
• THE SKINNY: Minnesota was the one who had to bail out of this game, with nearly two dozen positive tests. It's a bad break for Wisconsin, which missed two games earlier because of their own issues.