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meaning the Big Ten may be hard pressed to have eight bowl-qual- ifying teams. Minnesota needs a victory over Purdue to dramati- cally increase its chances of get- news Tuesday when results of his MRI came back negative. It means the injury to his shin, which kept him out of the Ohio State game, is not as seri- ous as what might have been feared. "I'm feeling good, GOOD NEWS FOR ALLEN Ricardo Allen received good NEWS & NOTES Tuesday. urday morning in Columbus before coaches decided he was unable to play, ending a string of 31 consecutive starts, account- ing for every game he'd played at Purdue. Allen was first hurt vs. Notre Dame, injuring an ankle that kept him out of the Irish's game- winning drive. Over the follow- ing weeks, the ailment spread to his shin. They still don't want me to beat myself up and get back sore. Allen warmed up on Sat- "They're resting me. " ting to six wins, and Michigan State, with a 4-4 record, may have to rely on beating Northwestern and Minnesota in the final two weeks of the season to qualify. can qualify, even with a 6-6 re- cord, we expect the Boilermakers to do no worse than the Heart of Dallas Bowl on New Year's Day as The point of this is, if Purdue ready to play. ... But right now, it's a wait-and-see thing for Ricardo. It's hoped that rest will help gresses, he'll feel better and be good enough to play this Satur- day, Allen take the field against Min- nesota — Allen said he'll play. "Maybe as the week pro- " Allen said " Hope said. ROSS DOUBTFUL doubtful for Saturday's game due to a lingering turf toe-like injury. The junior played in the first Wide receiver O.J. Ross is Ricardo Allen missed his first game as a Boilermaker vs. Ohio State, after making starts in all 31 of his previous games. Tom Campbell " the conference's seventh selec- tion. We wouldn't rule out a trip to the Dec. 28 Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas as the sixth spot, especially if Minnesota and Mich- nificantly in Ross' place, finishing with career highs of six catches for 48 yards. "I do feel comfortable, carthy said. "Anything I can do to help my team win, whether it's catching balls, blocking, any- thing I can do. I'm going to go out there and give it my all. It just happened I was in the game plan a little bit more. " Ma- " half vs. Ohio State but was on the sidelines in street clothes for the second. "That toe has to cool back off again and right now it's a ways away, nothing that has to be repaired or nothing that's serious, "He has some issues but " Coach Danny Hope said. "He's had a couple difficult ankle sprains and practicing, hobbling and limping on them has created some shin issues and soreness in his shins, some calcium deposits. We're hoping as the week goes on, things will cool off and he'll be where we'll be at with O.J. Ross; we'll know more as the week goes on. I'm not real optimistic, but I wasn't optimistic that he'd be able to go at all last week and he tried to. But he wasn't able to really get it done. " Hope said. "I'm not sure Dolapo Macarthy played sig- " Kitchens might be back Satur- day but likely as the backup to starting tackles Kevin Pamphile (left) and Trevor Foy (right). Purdue seems happy with its five offensive linemen who start- ed the OSU game, including left guard Peters Drey, center Rick Schmeig and right guard Rob- ert Kugler. For Kugler, it was his first career start, as he replaced Devin Smith. Afterward, Hope said Kugler graded out as the highest Boiler- maker lineman. R Purdue might turn to R Offensive lineman Justin ODDS AND ENDS igan State do not make it, limit- ing the Big Ten's pool of eligible teams to just six. Conversely, unless the Boil- ermakers run the table and finish Frankie Williams, or another Boiler, to field punts Saturday, after Josh Johnson dropped multiple attempts against Ohio State. Hope said Johnson has dealt with thumb injuries that might be affecting his ability to catch punts. Williams replaced Johnson late vs. the Buckeyes. He, Allen or Antavian Edison could be possibilities if Johnson is unable to receive punts against the Golden Gophers. R Hope liked getting Caleb TerBush extended playing time vs. Ohio State, rather than using a quarterback rotation. The fifth- year senior is likely to get a major- ity of the snaps vs. Minnesota, too. "I think our commitment to leave Caleb in the game last weekend was a good decision," Hope said. "I think he played well and is getting better, gain- ing some momentum. It also has allowed us to gain a little bit of continuity, which obviously we're behind at. — Gold and Black Staff " GOLDANDBLACK EXPRESS • VOLUME 23, EXPRESS 8 • 29