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| The new Big Ten Logo with its two divisions |
The Big Ten has been through a very tumultuous time since the 2010 season ended. There have been coaches hired, coaches fired, and new schools added.
The University of Nebraska has been added to the previously 11-team roster. Yes, the Big Ten has 12 teams (and the Big 12 has ten teams). This let the conference divide into two divisions for all sports, the “Leaders” and “Legends”. The Leaders are: Illinois, Indiana, Purdue, Ohio State, Penn State, and Wisconsin. The Legends are: Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Northwestern. A lot of people are all hung up on the Big Ten having 12 members, as well as the division names. My thought is that they are just fine and people should find better things to worry about.
The all-mighty Ohio State University has fallen from their perch at the top of the Big Ten. It was discovered in December of 2010 that players were selling their game worn jerseys and memorabilia for tattoos and cash. It was made even worse because head coach Jim Tressel knew about it. A lot went down between the NCAA and OSU, including numerous sanctions. Eventually Tressel resigned and quarterback Terrelle Pryor, who was supposed to be back this season, declared for the draft. Ohio State is now forced to find a new quarterback and hope their new coach can fix the disaster Tressel started.
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| Jim Tressel. The one in the sweater vest. |
Ohio State’s biggest rival, Michigan, also hired a new coach. Brady Hoke, a former football player at Michigan, was brought in to replace Rich Rodriguez. Rodriguez struggled for all three years to produce a talented team and connect with fans and alumni. Hoke inherits a defense that horrible last season, but has quarterback Denard Robinson at his disposal.
Another coaching change occurred when Indiana University fired Bill Lynch and acquired Kevin Wilson. Wilson was the offensive coordinator for Oklahoma State’s recently spectacular offense. Wilson had an odd incident at a radio show in Indianapolis this week. The talk show hosts were poking fun at Indiana University and its struggling football when Wilson just snapped on them. Some see it as a man defending his new team; some see it as a man with anger issues. The people in Bloomington just like guys with anger issues I guess.
Here’s a preview for the 2011 season, with each team in the position I’ll think they’ll finish the season. The team’s 2010 record is in parenthesis.
Leaders
#10 Wisconsin Badgers (11-2)- Transfer quarterback Russell Wilson was a three-year starter at North Carolina State and fills the major hole that was in Wisconsin’s offense for this season. Wisconsin brings back stud running backs Montee Ball and James White.
UPDATE 8/26/2011- I forgot to mention this but the Badgers are my pick to win the Big 10 Championship.
Purdue (4-8) - I hate hate hate Purdue, but this is my surprise team. They faced dozens of injuries all season long, and eventually lost their best running back, best wide receiver, and best quarterback. By the end of the season, they had used four quarterbacks throughout the season. If they can stay healthy, they’ll be dangerous.
Illinois (7-6) -There can’t be a harder team to predict how they will perform in the Big Ten then these guys. Their record the past five seasons: 7-6, 3-9, 5-7, 9-4, 2-10. So if the pattern continues (losing season, winning season, average season, losing season, and winning season) the Illini should have a mediocre season. Mediocrity has sadly become the norm under head coach Ron Zook. He is very similar to Notre Dame’s former coach Charlie Weis. They bring in top players but can’t ever get the most out of them.
#16 Ohio State (12-1) - It just doesn’t seem possible for the Buckeyes to recover from the turmoil of the past 6 or so months. They have a new coach and quarterback, and will be missing four of their key players because of suspension for the first five weeks of the season. When those players do come back it’ll take a while to get them incorporated into the system and up to speed.
#25 Penn State (7-6) - The Nittany Lions are ALWAYS over-hyped. They beat three absolutely horrible teams (i.e. Temple, Indiana State, and Youngstown State) at home, and then get blown out when they finally play a decent team. This year they don’t have any hype, so maybe they’ll be good.
Indiana (5-7) - The Indiana Hoosiers have a new coach this season, Kevin Wilson. That’s about all that matters really. Oh, and basketball season is less than five months away!
Legends
#11 Nebraska (10-4) - The Cornhuskers are the new kids on the block. They also bring one of the richest histories of any college football program and should fit right in with Ohio State and Michigan. Nebraska has the always dangerous Taylor Martinez at quarterback and two All-Americans on defense.
#17 Michigan State (11-2) - Senior quarterback Kirk Cousins is hoping to make this season even more special for the Spartans. Last year Sparty had a great year and finished 11-1 before losing to Alabama 49-7. The Spartans also bring back their best rusher so their offense should be very potent.
Northwestern (7-6) - You can’t but like the Wildcats. Northwestern is an academic school and seems like one of the few schools left that pushes academics over athletics. The Wildcats were doing great until their quarterback Dan Persa got injured, losing their final three games without him. He’ll be the starting QB this season and whenever he’s on the field he gives Northwestern a decisive advantage.
Michigan (7-6) - As mentioned, Michigan has a new coach, and a new offensive scheme. This new offense is going to rely more on the run, as opposed to the previous “Spread” formation. The Spread is what quarterback Denard Robinson excelled in so it’ll be interesting, and to Michigan’s advantage, if he can succeed in the new offense.
Iowa (8-5) - There wasn’t a lot of information on how the Hawkeyes will do this year. They will have running back Marcus Cooker back who took over the position midway through the season. Cooker is expected to have a huge year because four of the offensive linemen from last season are back.
Minnesota (3-9) - Even less info was found on the Minnesota Golden Gophers. Maybe I should start making up my own information? How would anybody know I was lying? Just kidding. The Gophers have a new head coach, Jerry Kill, who was the coach for Northern Illinois. Kill is a guy that likes to pound defenses with a strong running game. According to Minnesota running back, MarQueis Gray, “this is the type of offense that we need.' It makes everybody on our offense salivate."
Sports Illustrated writer Stewart Mandel has the Big Ten finishing as followed:
Leaders: Wisconsin, Penn State, Ohio State, Purdue, Indiana, Illinois
Legends: Nebraska, Mich. State, Iowa, Northwestern, Michigan, Minnesota
So we’ll see after the season who’s smarter, me, or the guy that gets paid to know everything about college football.
Looking at these previews the common theme for about every team is quarterback. Ohio State, Wisconsin, Penn State, and Indiana all have new quarterbacks. Northwestern, Michigan State, and Michigan retain their dynamic QB’s. Quarterback is probably the most important position of any on a football team, but in the wide-open Big Ten race, a great QB can be the difference between Big Ten Champion and Big Ten Contender.
The Big Ten released a statement today saying that the league is not interested in expansion now “or at any time in the foreseeable future, barring a significant shift in the current intercollegiate athletic landscape.” This comes in result to last summer’s mad dash of schools leaving conferences, and recent talks of Texas A&M possibly joining the SEC. Many speculate that if expansion does occur, it would involve Missouri and Pittsburgh; perhaps even Notre Dame.
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