College football Week 11 preview: Key games, keys to each - ESPN

Week 11 has arrived and with it a ranked opponent for Michigan. The Wolverines put their perfect season — on the field anyway — on the line at one-loss Penn State.

The game also is significant for Penn State and coach James Franklin, who is just 3-16 against top-10 opponents. Another season of losses to both Michigan and Ohio State will raise bigger questions about Penn State's direction.

Other key games Saturday include Ole Miss at Georgia, Miami at Florida State, Utah at Washington and USC at Oregon.

Our writers provide three keys to each of those games, as well as how Week 11 can help Heisman candidates build their cases and quotes from the week.

(Noon ET, Fox)

After another week of off-field drama, Michigan will experience its biggest test on the field at Penn State, which has won seven straight at home and boasts the nation's No. 1 defense against the run.

Michigan distractions: Michigan is still awaiting possible discipline from the Big Ten, which sources say is considering a multigame suspension for coach Jim Harbaugh. The distractions are there, but Michigan has handled them incredibly well, even long before the NCAA investigation. The Wolverines played their first three games without Harbaugh and have used the controversy and criticism around their program as galvanizing forces.

Penn State's run defense: For Penn State to take down Michigan, the Lions will need their elite run defense (just 60.3 yards per game) to hold up much better than it did in 2022, when Donovan Edwards and Blake Corum led a Wolverines' rushing attack that piled up 418 yards and four touchdowns. Franklin told me the team's defensive line depth is significantly better, and the group could regain Chop Robinson and Amin Vanover from injury.

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