Excitement seems to be the keyword around the Big Ten as conference play begins this week with four games scheduled Saturday. Eight of the 11 Big Ten teams will open their conference schedules this week.

"We look forward to beginning Big Ten play," Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said; his No. 1 Buckeyes will host No. 24 Penn State this weekend.

"We are excited about hosting an undefeated Wisconsin team and opening the Big Ten schedule," Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said. The Badgers and Wolverines are the only two undefeated Big Ten teams playing each other this week.

"We're into Big Ten, and like every other team, we're anxious to get into our conference and see what kind of a football team we have," Purdue coach Joe Tiller said. Purdue will host 2-1 Minnesota on Saturday.

Though both Illinois and Iowa will start Big Ten play this weekend, both will play an out-of-conference game during the season, a scheduling decision that was met with different reactions by their coaches.

"I think it's probably good to have a non-league game," Illinois coach Ron Zook said. "Sometimes it's good to step out of the conference and step back in." The Fighting Illini will host Ohio in a non-conference game on Oct. 14.

"We'd just as soon play our four non-league games early and start a week earlier," Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said, "that'd be a perfect world." Northern Illinois will pay a visit to the Hawkeyes on Oct. 28.

Instant Replay Mistake Raises Questions

In the Big Ten, instant replay has been around since 2004 and uses a technical advisor to sit in the booth during each game and review each play. If an incorrect call is spotted, the advisor alerts the officials on the field who then take the appropriate actions. This year, the Big Ten instituted the use of a coaches' challenge.

Oregon's 34-33 home victory last Saturday against Oklahoma has raised questions about the instant replay system and officiating in college football. Though the game was ultimately decided by a blocked kick, Oklahoma has pointed to two incorrect calls that they feel cost them the game. The game was officiated by a Pac-10 crew that was suspended by the league Monday.

Nationally, conferences are free to choose their method of instant replay, and though others have gone with systems different from the Big Ten's, Ohio State Jim Tressel supports his conferences system whole-heartedly.

"It's the best you could have," Tressel said.

The controversy from the Oklahoma-Oregon game has also sparked debate about whether a national pool of officials would be beneficial to the sport, the idea being that officiating would become more consistent and less biased.

Penn State coach Joe Paterno, the longest tenured coach in the Big Ten, supports a national official pool.

"I'd like to see the officiating become standard, having a national pool of officials would be a start," Paterno said.

The overwhelming response from Big Ten coaches, though, is that such a change would be too difficult and complicated to make.

"I think there are some real valid points regarding that issue," Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said, "I think the difficulty is in being able to bring officials from all over the country from a logistical standpoint and making sure they're all trained and educated by the same people."

Purdue coach Joe Tiller offered the same thought.

"I think it would be a very costly proposition, I'd be surprised if we ever see it," the Boilermaker headman said.

It doesn't appear that a change is likely as both financial costs and logistical restraints may prove to be too complicated to work out.

"It's like calculus," Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said, referring to the plan and its problems, "and I'm not that smart."

Ohio State Gets Spark From Receiver Ginn

No. 1 Ohio State has lived up to their pre-season hype this season, beating Texas 24-7 on the road en route to a 3-0 start heading into this weekend's game against No. 25 Penn State. Perhaps the most electrifying reason for their success has been the stellar play of junior wide receiver Ted Ginn, Jr.

Ginn, a national champion track star in high school, is a player whom opposing teams have to fear when game planning for the Buckeyes. Lightening fast, Ginn caught 51 passes for 803 yards and four touchdowns in his sophomore year. This season, Ginn already has 203 yards receiving and a career best five receiving touchdowns after just three games.

"I really think he has grown day by day for the last couple of years as a receiver," Ohio State coach Jim Tressel said.

Going into the season, questions had been raised about Ginn's game-to-game consistency; some games the receiver would be unstoppable, but in some games he'd be unnoticeable. Ginn appears to have put those questions to rest however by catching a touchdown pass in each of the Buckeyes games so far this season.

Not just a threat as a receiver, Ginn has five career punt return touchdowns and is a threat to score every time he touches the ball.

"I think he's a great football player," Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said, "I think he's shown that from the moment he got to Ohio State."