3 underrated college football games you can’t miss in Week 8

3. No. 16 Penn State vs. Minnesota

Coming into last week, Penn State seemed like a formidable threat to win the Big Ten East. They had cruised through their schedule, including a 42-13 blowout on the road against Auburn. They had a top-five run defense in the country, and an offense led by sixth-year senior Sean Clifford and five-star freshman Nicholas Singleton.

The Nittany Lions were rolling, and many expected them to continue rolling against No. 5 Michigan.

That didn’t happen. Michigan took their run defense and piled up 418 yards. Aside from a perfectly executed read option that went for 61 yards, Clifford, Singleton, and Penn State’s offense were helpless. While the big question coming into the week was if Michigan was legit, that narrative has quickly flipped to Penn State.

In their way of reestablishing credibility is Minnesota, a team that was once looking to run the Big Ten West but has suffered back-to-back losses to Purdue and Illinois. Minnesota has a sixth-year quarterback of their own in Tanner Morgan, but he got hurt against the Illini on Saturday and is questionable for this week’s game.

The one guy the Gophers will have, though, is running back Mohamed Ibrahim, who is nothing short of a star. With almost 700 yards on the season and nine touchdowns despite missing a game, Ibrahim will have a chance to test the Nittany Lions the same way Michigan did.

Penn State still has a shot at proving to be a top-10 team deserving of top-tier status in the Big Ten. That ship has largely sailed for Minnesota, but a big road win to stop their slump would go a long way in turning their season back around and vying for a solid bowl game. Expect an underrated battle between these two Big Ten foes.