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Unbeaten Penn State and unbeaten Minnesota will square off Nov. 9 in Minneapolis in the biggest game of the Big Ten season to date.

And James Franklin’s Nittany Lions (8-0, 5-0) will be without a key performer on the nation’s No. 9 ranked defense.

Franklin, speaking to reporters Tuesday night in State College, said starting defensive tackle Antonio Shelton is suspended for the Minnesota game.

Shelton, a fourth-year junior, was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct and ejected from the Michigan State game, a 28-7 PSU win Saturday in East Lansing, for spitting at a Spartans player. Shelton’s actions occurred midway through the fourth quarter.

The suspension is just for the Minnesota game.

The Big Ten Conference put out a statement Tuesday night in which it publicly reprimanded Shelton for his actions and backed Penn State’s decision to suspend him one game. The Big Ten said Shelton violated the conference’s sportsmanship policy.

"The activities in the fourth quarter with Antonio Shelton, he’s been suspended, and we’ll move on from there,’’ Franklin said Tuesday. PennLive freelance writer/videographer Paddy Cotter was in State College Tuesday for the Penn State media availability.

Shelton took to Twitter at 8:20 p.m. Saturday night to apologize for his actions in the Michigan State game:

Shelton’s tweet in full: “I would like to apologize for my actions during tonight’s game. That was extremely selfish behavior. I misrepresented my coach, my school and my team. That’s not who we are and that’s not who I am. I represent more than myself, this won’t happen again.”

Penn State and Minnesota are both off this week.

Shelton has nine tackles in eight games with 2.5 tackles for loss and two quarterback hits. The Penn State defense is one of the deeper units in the country and Shelton essentially was in a timeshare at his position with sophomore PJ Mustipher, who will likely start against the Gophers.

Mustipher has 21 tackles in eight games with three tackles for loss.

Redshirt freshman Judge Culpepper was listed behind Mustipher on the depth chart heading into the Michigan State contest.

19 Scenes from Penn State football practice, Oct. 29, 2019

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