Big Ten Blogger Roundtable WRAP UP

Part of the fun of being a part of the Big Ten Bloggers community has been the roundtables. Someone posts a set of questions, everyone answers them on their own blog and then the original question asker gets to round up the answers in a wrap up post. I have never stepped up to host a roundtable until this one. Usually this exercise contains more pertinent and valuable information but this one is more for entertainment value than depth chart analysis.

The Rivalry Round winner of absolute MUST READ was the Only Game That Matters (link below). I strongly encourage you to read.

Participating blogs (I hope I didn't miss any)...

• Only Game That Matters (B10) - Great interview with Alex Trebec (who can't stand that fruity Ken Jennings)
• Meet Me at Kinnick (Iowa) - needs to work through his angst over Illini fans
• Varsity Blue (Mich) - spewing some hate on Michigan State
• Michigan Sports Center (Mich) - still yearns for Terrell Pryor
• Enlightened Spartan (MSU) - total dislike for Michigan plus a bonus Spaceballs reference
• Lake the Posts (NU) - would love to beat OSU (just once!)
• Buckeye Battle Cry - renames Penn State as "Third-Placers, unless Wisconsin is having a good year"
• Happy Hour Valley (PSU) - thumbs up for Arrested Development reference, thumbs down for Harold and Kumar reference
• Black Shoes Diaries (PSU) - nobody in B10 would add talent to Penn State
• Nittany Line (PSU) - huge fans of the Land Grant Trophy
• Boiled Sports (Pur) - surprisingly not a fan of the University of Indiana People from Indiana
• Off the Tracks (Pur) - enjoying the fact that Navy has a 1-game win streak over Notre Dame

Unintentionally ommitted...

• Maize and Blue Nation (Mich)
• Maize and Brew (Mich)

WRAP UP

1. ESPN's Adam Rittenberg recently ranked the top 5 rivalries in the Big Ten and there were some controversial results (Illinois v Ohio State as #3?). Clearly Ohio State vs. Michigan is the #1 rivalry in the Big Ten, but give me your next three. Your school does not have to be included in this list, but regardless of who you choose defend your picks.

After the obvious Michigan vs. Ohio State rivalry there were two more that stood out. In no particular order...

Minnesota vs. Wisconsin - many appreciated this one because of it's longevity and the fact that the teams are playing for the fiercest traveling trophy in the country. Who else gets to play for a giant axe and then how many coaches let their players run around the field with it. Considering I was the only blogger participating who roots for either team it is impressive it received as many votes as it did.

Michigan vs. Michigan State - obviously received much attention from the Michigan and MSU blogs. But this rivalry was recognized by others as well as a fierce rivalry that has implications beyond the game itself.

Others mentioned were Pur/Ind, OSU/PSU, Minn/Iowa and Ill/NU

While it did not receive many votes much attention was paid to the uniquely designed Land Grant Trophy given to the winner of Penn St / Michigan St. It is a modern engineering marvel and dearly treasured by fans of both teams.

2. Obviously winning every game is important and beating really good teams sends a stronger message than beating Minnesota. Assume every team is .500 this year and the outcome of your next two games means nothing outside of pride and a year's worth of bragging rights. Give me the two schools you would want to beat (in order) and why. What makes beating School's A and B significant?

Ohio State was a rather popular choice. Not because the likes of NU, PSU, Mich, etc wanted to beat the best, but rather they just want to actually BEAT them. PSU and NU in particular come to mind because they just can't seem to beat the Buckeyes (ever).

3. Take the two teams from above that you claim are your biggest rivals and give me a new mascot for them.

Some classics include...

Illinois = Chief Bandwagoners
Michigan = GOB (from Arrested Development)
Ohio State = Sweater Vests
Michigan State = Failures
Ohio State = Convicts
Illinois = Illanoy Fighting Zookers
Minnesota = The Long Forgottens
Michigan = Cobra Kai
Indiana = Indiana University People from Indiana (my personal favorite)
Michigan = Yellow Bellies
Indiana = "a hillbilly with the sense kicked out of him"
Michigan = Tressel's Bitches

4. There are some new rules in college football this year. My favorite is the Big Ten experimental rule which states that after every win this year you get to pluck one player off their roster and bring them back to your campus. Looking at your schedule give me two players you would pluck (assuming a win), why you would take them and what would you do with them?

The BIG winner here was James Laurinaitis. Almost a unanimous pick, as everyone recognizes how talented he is and how much he would help any team in the Big Ten (damn you Mason for not keeping him in Minnesota).

After JL there obviously was Beanie Wells, Arrelious Benn, Juice Williams (PUH-LEASE) and several others receiving one vote each.

5. Brian at MGO was kind enough to post a diary entry which gives us and new coach Rich Rodriguez a list of Michigan traditions that maybe we were not all aware of. This has inspired two final questions...

5A - are there any Michigan traditions that he missed? (here is your chance for some Michigan cheap shots)

This was pretty tame with a few pics of...

5B - Are there any traditions of your school's rival that we should all be aware of?

My personal favorite was the Indiana tradition of taking aerial pictures of a full football stadium when the Hoosiers were hosting Wisconsin or Ohio State. These photos were clearly then distributed as showing the passionate Hoosier fan base, but NOW we all know better (my team of fact checkers did not take the time to verify, we are just going with it as fact!).

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That is it in a nutshell.

BTB Roundtable - Rivalry Edition

Some of you may or may not know that there is a fairly large group of Big Ten Bloggers who collaborate on ideas and compliment each other on how awesome we all are. I have offered to host 2008's first roundtable and I have deemed it a Rivalry themed roundtable. If you are unfamiliar with how this works I post my answers, other bloggers post their answers on their blogs then I'll do a recap post near the end of this week highlighting the highlights. Here goes...


1. ESPN's Adam Rittenberg recently ranked the top 5 rivalries in the Big Ten and there were some controversial results (Illinois v Ohio State as #3?). Clearly Ohio State vs. Michigan is the #1 rivalry in the Big Ten, but give me your next three. Your school does not have to be included in this list, but regardless of who you choose defend your picks.

1. Minnesota vs. Wisconsin - longest played rivalry in all of NCAA football. People with short memories will tell me that Wisconsin dominates this series and is meaningless, but Minnesota leads the all time series winning 59, losing 50 and tying 8 in the 117 total games played. It is true that in recent years this has not been very competitive but this is a passionate rivalry and both team's fan bases care very much about winning Paul Bunyan's Axe. It should also be noted that this is a key game for recruiting purposes as both teams fight for each other's players on a regular basis.
   
   
2. Michigan vs. Michigan St. - In state rivalry that has some passion. This one, like the one above, has lacked competitiveness in recent years with Michigan going 15-5 in the last 20 meetings and leads 34-19-2. But also like the one above it is crucial for recruiting wars and is a game fans care about deeply.
   
   
3. Purdue vs. Indiana - the battle for the Old Oaken Bucket is usually a meaningless game on the national and even conference level. But it is hard to ignore a series that has seen 110 games played. Dominated by Purdue this series beats out a few other considered rivalries but not by much. The in-state angle and the longevity of the rivalry make this the 4th best rivalry in the Big Ten.

Rivalries considered but didn't make my cut were Ohio State vs. Penn State (dominated by Ohio State AND has few games played), Wisconsin vs. Iowa (both teams might consider this game their 2nd rivalry) and Iowa vs. Minnesota.

2. Obviously winning every game is important and beating really good teams sends a stronger message than beating Minnesota. Assume every team is .500 this year and the outcome of your next two games means nothing outside of pride and a year's worth of bragging rights. Give me the two schools you would want to beat (in order) and why. What makes beating School's A and B significant?

Wisconsin - I put this ahead of Iowa because the largest population base in Minnesota cares more about this game than the Iowa game. Much of the disdain for Badger fans is carried over from NFL loyalties where Vikings and Packer fans also don't care for each other. Wisconsin in recent years has raided some quality football players from Minnesota so this game carries more recruiting weight than probably any other game on our schedule.

Iowa - the other significant rivalry game on our schedule. If you live south of the Twin Cities this is the game that matters to you. Gopher fans are tired of Hawkeye fans filling our stadium and stealing our goalposts. Fortunately for Gopher fans this is the one rivalry trophy that has resided in Minnesota more often than not.

3. Take the two teams from above that you claim are your biggest rivals and give me a new mascot for them.

Wisconsin Favres - there are probably as many green #4's in the stands at a Badger game as there are Ron Dayne jerseys.

Iowa Drunkards - is there anything else to do in Iowa?

4. There are some new rules in college football this year. My favorite is the Big Ten experimental rule which states that after every win this year you get to pluck one player off their roster and bring them back to your campus. Looking at your schedule give me two players you would pluck (assuming a win), why you would take them and what would you do with them?

James Laurinaitis - besides the fact that he is one of the best linebackers in the country and besides the fact that we are very weak at linebacker, Laurinaitis is from Minnesota and represents why we need to keep in state players in state. The current defense would look much different with an All-American LB in the middle (although who's wouldn't) and keeping kids in state like Willie Mobley, Michael Floyd and Bryce McNeal would be easier if there was a history of the best choosing Minnesota over Ohio State, Notre Dame or Michigan.

PJ Hill - I know that we need defense worse than Pres. Bush needs approval ratings, but we also do not have a running game to truly keep defenses honest. Give us someone who can carry the ball, get first downs and keep the clock moving and that will actually help out our beleaguered defense.

5. Brian at MGO was kind enough to post a diary entry which gives us and new coach Rich Rodriguez a list of Michigan traditions that maybe we were not all aware of. This has inspired two final questions...

5A - are there any Michigan traditions that he missed? (here is your chance for some Michigan cheap shots)

Dominating the Little Brown Jug series comes to mind, but I choose to ignore that one. I believe a new tradition was started in 2007 falling in one of the best upsets in recent memory.


5B - Are there any traditions of your school's rival that we should all be aware of?

Wisconsin's tradition of the student section leaving at halftime is a personal favorite of mine. Are they bored with the game or is it already in hand? No, 2 quarters away from the bar is too much to handle, they can watch the second half at the bar right?


That is all I've got for now, check back in a few days for the recap.

Big Ten Blogger Roudtable - Springtime Ed.

The spring football game has come and passed. While there was slightly more excitement surrounding the annual scrimmage, it was still met with a collective yawn across Gopher Nation. Partially because nobody has ever cared about the Gopher's spring game and partially because most of the incoming flux of talent is yet to arrive on campus. So while this game was important for the further development of the offense the other side of the ball was missing what could be half of it's likely starters.

With the passing of the Spring Game we have to give an assesment for the rest of the Big Ten Blogosphere to know where the Golden Gophers stand.

1. I love spring. Flowers blooming. Birds chirping. Bones breaking. ACL's tearing. List the injuries your team sustained and describe their impact on 2008.

No significant injuries that will affect Fall 2008

2. Break down the major position battles going on with your offense.

The major offensive decisions are on the right side of the offensive line and wide receiver.

Here is who started the spring game along the OLine

LT - Dom Alford - should be a lock to start
LG - Ned Tevale - should also be a lock
C - Jeff Tow-Arnett - JR who started three games at LG in 2007
RG - Ryan Wynn - rFR got the starting nod over DJ Burris who started 11 games in this spot last season
RT - Jason Meinke - the walk on JR got the start but will likely have to work to keep it

Who is battling for C, RG and RT?

• DJ Burris - started 11 games at RG and was a Sporting News All Big Ten freshman. Currently Burris is listed as a Center and will battle with Tow-Arnett, but should nobody step up to lock down RG expect Burris to make the switch.
• rFR Chris Bunders - should see some time and push Meinke at RT.
• JR Ryan Ruckdashel - reserve for two seasons and has appeared in 21 games as a Gopher. Should be given a chance to prove he is a viable starter at RG.
• SO Andy Brinkhouse - possibly in the mix for RT.

I know this is so exciting to discuss who are the starters at C, RG and RT. I can hardly sleep at night while I think of the different combinations and how it will best block Weber's front side. But getting production on the right side is very important to the development of the offense in year two.

At WR there isn't a ton of intrigue either. Who will start opposite Eric Decker is up in the air but since there will be 5 or 6 receivers contributing on a regular basis who starts and who actually gets balls thrown their way are two different things.

1. Eric Decker - JR

• Ralph Spry - SO
• Brandon Green - FR
• Xavier Brandon - FR
• Brodrick Smith - FR
• Trey Herndon - SO
• David Pittman - JR

But most of the offense returns and should progress in their development.

3. You knew this was coming. Break down the major position battles on defense.

How much time do you have to read this? I could list the defensive starters for the spring game but there is a pretty good chance that 11 different names will be atop the two-deep come September. The hard part here is that many of the incoming freshmen will be relied upon to push the incumbent starters or take over completely and most of them are not yet on campus.

Lets take a quick look at all of the positions...

Defensive End - Willie VanDeSteeg and Will Brody
competition? - JR-Lee Campbell, rFR-Anthony Jacobs, FR-Brandon Kirksey

Brody will almost certainly not be a starter come game 1. My money is on Jacobs to earn the starting spot opposite Willie VDS. But competition will ensue at RE.

Defensive Tackle - Eric Small and Garrett Brown
competition? - FR-Jewhan Edwards

Both saw significant time in 2007 but this was a major weakness. I fully expect to see Edwards starting at DT very soon.

Linebacker - Steve Davis, Nate Triplett, Kevin Manion
competition - FR-Sam Maresh(MLB), JR-Deon Hightower, FR-Spencer Reeves, rFR-Andre Tate

This area was awful last year too. I would not be surprised to see Maresh, Reeves and Hightower as the starting backers this year. That would be two true freshmen, I know.

Cornerback - Ryan Collado, Marcus Sherrels
competition - JR-Traye Simmons, FR-Troy Stoudermire, FR-Tim Dandridge

Collado improved as his freshman season wore on and then everybody expects Traye Simmons to be our best CB once he arrives on campus in June. Sherrels makes things interesting. He was a recent conversion from WR to CB and the staff has had a lot of good things to say about him. Adding some depth and anybody who can play back there is a good thing and there was little chance Sherrels was going to see much time on offense so give defense a shot.

Safety - Kyle Theret and Tramaine Brock
competition - JR-Simoni Lawrence, FR-Keanon Cooper

Game 1 should have Brock and Lawrence starting at FS and SS respectively. Both are JUCO transfers who will be instant upgrades. I am a fan of Theret and like what he brings but he'll be there for depth.

4. Who are the unknown kids on your team that will be household names come December?

This question isn't fair because outside of Minnesota everybody on this team is an unknown commodity but I'll pick a name.

QB/WR/PR/CB - David Pittman

The JUCO transfer is a super athlete and will be a key member of the spread coast offense. I imagine OffCord Mike Dunbar is waking up in the middle of the night with new plays that come to him in dreams to spotlight Pittman.

How would you describe the general mood around your program? Are you gearing up the tailgate party for a conference title run or do you get the impression there are going to be a lot of empty seats in your stadium this year?

Conference title is out of the question. I have an IV of maroon and gold kool-aid permanently being pumped into my veins but not even I could imagine an Illini-esque run to the Rose Bowl. Fans are excited to see the young kids come in and show us what Big Ten athletes look like. There are high expectations for what was the most talented recruiting class in school history, but they are mostly freshmen and this is a year to build for the next couple.

What I know everyone is looking forward to are the new unis!

Big Ten Blogger Roudtable - back from sabbatical

Well I took a hiatus from the Roundtables. I would post so much stuff on Mon-Wed I just didn't feel like posting any more on Thur or Fri. Anyway, I felt like it would be fun to get back on the saddle so here goes!...

Around the Oval takes the reigns as we head into Rivalry week. What's bigger?...

Michigan vs. Ohio State?
or
Minnesota vs. Wisconsin

I think that answer is obvious, as nobody cares about Mich or Ohio St. I mean really Minnesota/Wisconsin have played more than any 2 schools in all of NCAA.

1. Call me crazy, but it seems like the refs have been even worse this year than usual. I've noticed what seems like an unusal amount of questionable calls/non-calls go against the Buckeyes this season, but then, I am just a little biased, and the only referee performances I notice are the crappy ones. What have you thought of the Big Ten refs this season? Do any especially bad calls stand out to you?

Heck yes, were it not for the refs I have no doubt the gophers would be fighting for more than just the Ax this weekend. Those jerks are out to get us as part of a larger Big Ten conspiracy.

Really, I can't take my eyes off the train wreck that is our defense. I haven't noticed the refs are even involved in the game.

2. How is recruiting going for your team? Any incoming players that opponents should be concerned about for 2008, or will the cupboards be left bare? (Note: If you don't follow recruiting, please post an entertaining picture of some sort at this point.)

Can I do both?

What amazes me is that the gophers are having one of (if not THE) worst seasons in team history and they are likely going to bring in their best recruiting class in years ever. I'm not sure if the Big Ten should "FEAR" anybody, but this is going to be a serious upgrade in overall talent. This class is missing that 1 or 2 guys who is a rock star, but it is racking up a handful of 4-star kids and a ton of good 3-star kids.

Here are 5 incoming true freshmen who I think will start immediately and be an upgrade...

• WR - Brandon Green - 4-star
• MLB - Sam Maresh - 4-star
• OLB - Spencer Reeves - 3-star
• S - Simoni Lawrence - 3-star
• CB - one of a handful commitments will start here

Still holding out hope for...

• QB - Marqueis Gray - 4-star, uncommitted
  
• DE - Willie Mobley - 4-star, instate kid, uncommitted, would start 2008
• S - Nolan Brester - 4-star, coach's son, committed to Texas, would start '08
  

All in all, 18 commits thus far and should be one of the top Big Ten recruiting classes. This is the only thing to be excited about this season!


3. The OSU-Michigan game is taken pretty seriously 'round these parts. For at least this week, the rivalry is all-consuming for just about every OSU fan I know. But let's face it, there's plenty more to hate (or at least dislike) in college football than our rivals. So, other than your team's current rival(s), what team, person, rule, concept, intangible object, etc., would you like to declare a rival, the better to focus your hatred on them/it?

I'm going to declare "forced rivalry games" as our rival! Minnesota boasts the most rival trophy games in all of college football. We have THREE four!

• Paul Bunyan's Ax - Wisconsin - since 1890 (1930 for the trophy)
  
• Floyd of Rosedale - Iowa - since 1935
  
• The Little Brown Jug - Michigan - since 1903
  
• The Governor's Bell - Penn State - since 1993 - this one's gay
  

My problem is that this has become the new rage. Everyone wants a traveling trophy rivalry. Well you can't just make these things up, there has to be some history behind these things. For example...

• Land Grant Trophy - Michigan State vs. Penn State - 1993 - RIVALRY?
  
• The Governor's Bell - Minnesota vs. Penn State - 1993 - WHY, WHY, WHY?
  
• Golden Boot - Arkansas vs. LSU - 1996 - you wait till 1996 to get a trophy?
  
• Heartland Trophy - Wisconsin vs. Iowa - 2004 - boring
  
• Telephone Trophy - Iowa State vs. Missouri - for not worst in Big 12 that year?
  
• Governor's Cup - West Virginia vs. Marshall - 2006 - not even in same conference!
  

Seriously, Penn State invented a couple rivalries in 1993, West Virginia and Marshall aren't even in the same conference. And why did Minnesota ever establish the Governor's Bell? It just takes away from our 3 established and significant rivalry games.

Anyway, I think college football is being saturated with "rivalry games" Every game doesn't have to have a title (kind of like every Saturday doesn't need a title, ESPN). Welcome to the "We played once 47 years ago Bowl" on Saturated Saturday.

2nd biggest problem in college football? - BCS sucks!

Big Ten Bloggers Roundtable - week 8

I have taken a few weeks off from the roundtable, but I'm back. The previous roundtables hosted by Run Up The Score and Maize n Brew, both were fine hosts but I never got around to participating in their discussion questions.

Well, the Hoosier Report is taking the bull by the horns this week and I'm back...

1. Call your shot. We are halfway through the Big Ten season (or, at least, most of us are). What will be your team's final record? Where, if anywhere, will your team be spending late December/early January? Who will win the Big Ten?

Well, my team is doomed for it's first non-bowl season in 6 years. Ultimately that doesn't concern me. What I want to see is improvement and recruits committing. If we lose the rest of our games but land a handful of the bigger named recruits we are seeking then I am a happy camper. Coach Brewster in his press conference this week said "bowl games don't excite me, winning championships excites me." I love his attitude and his efforts to make this team more than just competitive. I'll take a step, or two, or three backwards IF it means we will soon move forward.

Who will win the Big Ten? Who knows the say this college football season is going I'd say it could still be anybody outside of Minnesota or Iowa. Purdue could run the table and finish 5-2 or even Northwestern could win out to finish 5-2. All signs point to the winner of Ohio State / Michigan will be the champ. My money is on Ohio State, their defense is awesome and with every game their offense becomes more and more dangerous.

2. How is your team's coaching situation? Clearly, this varies from school to school, with some coaches approaching retirement (Carr/Paterno), some who are just starting out (Brewster/Fitzgerald), the unique case of Bill Lynch, and others who seem to be in their primes. If your coach is on the tail end of his career, where do you see things going from here? If he's still early in his tenure, any buyer's remorse? If he's in he's somewhere in the middle, are you happy or wishing things would go a different direction? How does your view correspond to the "majority" view among your school's fans?

As of today, October 17th, I am still a big fan of Brewster. I think his act is wearing thin on some because clearly 1-5 speaks more loudly than his optimistic words. He uses words like passionate and tremendous each and every time that he has a microphone in front of him. And everything that happens to this team is "positive". Like I said, this is rubbing some people the wrong way. From day 1 he was talking about winning and winning now. So people were expecting that NOW. There have been growing pains and Brewster's initial optimism has set him up for people to be disappointed.

With that said, I love it and and I'm glad he raised expectations from day 1. Maybe he falls on his face and maybe he is the worst coach in all of football. But currently he is doing his job. Raise expectations, get Gopher Nation excited and then work your tail off to meet them.

It is a huge transition and many of his changes have been implemented that clash with his roster. A spread offense has been implemented that has actually gone fairly well, but it has hurt a defense that was already lacking talent. The previous staff was able to hide their weak defense with a dominating run game that ate up the clock and kept them on the sidelines. Now we have an offense that gives us more 3 n outs and incomplete passes. Part of that might be due to a freshman QB.

I'm not going to fault him for his system struggling with another coach's players. This is why we give college coaches at least 3 seasons to see if they can win (and usually we are wrong).

BONUS BASKETBALL QUESTION: If you plan to cover basketball, give us a brief outlook for your team. Who is your best player? What do you expect from the team?

We have Tubby Smith in town, BABY!!! I actually like our chances this year. I won't go into any detail now but my prediction is a major turnaround and come Selection Sunday the Gophers will get one of the last bids into the tournament.

Big Ten Blogger Roudtable - Part 5

Week 5 of the roundtable and a very good set of questions by Lake the Post (Northwestern blog). I know everyone eagerly anticipates my answers so I won't keep you waiting any longer...

1. Michigan turned to Russell Crowe (successfully). ND went with Regis (unsuccessfully). Imagine your team is in desperate need of a pregame pep talk (no imagination needed at NU). You can bring in anyone in the world. Who do you turn to and why?

Well, the obvious answer would be to bring in a famous alum. Tony Dungy is a worthy candidate since you know he just won the Super Bowl, Barber/Maroney could come and share why their NFL success is because of their time in Minnesota or even former gopher QB, Sandy Stephens the 1962 Rose Bowl MVP. But lets go with someone from outside the program.

I'm going with Bill Murray. I know this clip is about killing gophers but a Varmit will never quit! Varmit-Cong!



And that's all she wrote!

2. What perception about your program is perpetuated to the point where it is your pet peeve? Why does it bother you so much (no, the answer does not have to be an alliteration)?

In this case perception is pretty close to reality. We are mediocre. Our defense is terrible. We haven't been to the Rose Bowl in 45 years.

But I guess the perception that you cannot win at Minnesota annoys me. Too many professional teams here hinder the passion of the fan base, it's a hockey state, it's a basketball school, there isn't enough local talent to sustain a college program, yada, yada, yada. These are excuses and there are just as many positives here as there are negatives. The right coach CAN win at Minnesota. Is that Tim Brewster? Way too early to tell but at least he's attacking the program's challenges head on with the intent to overcome.

3. It is only week 5 of the season, but you've been asked to create your team's highlight reel for the season. You get to choose one song. What is it and why?

I'm sticking with the Caddyshack theme. This is just a short clip, the song is of course "I'm All Right" by the great Kenny Loggins!



This isn't exactly a banner year for gopher football, but things are looking bright for the future. I like what Brewster is doing, I like our young offense and I think the talent level here will be better sooner rather than later.

Big Ten Blogger Roudtable - Part 4

Big Ten Roundtable is back and we have great set of questions from Maize n Brew.

1. Time to break out the crystal ball. I want to know what happens at the END of the season. Give me your offensive and defensive Players of the Year in the Big Ten along with Coach of the Year and why.

Offense - Barring injury I don't know how you could keep this award away from Mike Hart. He is tearing up defenses every game and has been the one thing Michigan fans could count on their way to a 1-2 start. Runner-Up = Matt Painter.

Defense - If Ohio State finishes 4th or better in conference this will go to Laurinaitis. I get the feeling that the award is already his unless he gets injured or if Ohio State really stumbles and gets passed by Pur, Mich St, Ind or anybody other than PSU, Wis or Mich. Somebody is going to have to have a year that absolutely dominates whatever Laurinaitis does. Runner-Up? - somebody yet unknown will step up and have a big year.

2. With the upsets, close games, and head scratchers so far, every game we thought was going to be important has changed. Michigan State is 3-0, for Pete's sake, and they look good doing it. Pick the three games on the Big Ten Schedule that will determine the Big Ten Champion. Bonus Points for not picking three games on your own schedule.

• Ohio State @ Penn State - I think this might be THE game this year. I have every reason to believe that Ohio State will be 8-0 heading into this game. Their biggest question mark has been their offense but they'll have 8 games under their belts by this point and should be getting to a point where we'll know what to expect with this offense. It showed signs of life at Washington and if they get things going their defense is good enough that they'll win the league. On the other side, Penn State will have already played Michigan and Wisconsin. If they get through those games this will be their last hurdle and could have the B10 all but wrapped up.
  
• Penn State @ Michigan - first game of the Big Ten season and it is an elimination game for both teams. This is bigger for Michigan than it is Penn State though. If the Wolverines can get this win it will be the game that puts them back on the map and will give them confidence to go out and win the Big Ten. Should they lose they'll be 1-3 and essentially be fighting to get bowl eligible. This is Penn State's statement game. They have had trouble with Michigan in recent memory. If they can go to the Big House and win they feel ready for anybody and will establish themselves as the team to beat.
• Wisconsin's final 3 (@OSU, Mich, @Min) - Unless disaster has struck Wisconsin will enter this final stretch 9-0 or 8-1. Win these final 3 games and they'll very likely be conference champs. Going to Ohio State will be tough enough considering the Buckeye defense and what should be a better offesne. Then they get the wounded wolverines at home. At this point that game appears better than it did a month ago, but should still be tough. Then you have the trap game on the road against a rival. The smart money (and the dumb money for that matter) will be on the Badgers but any let down and the Gopher offense could put up some crazy numbers.
  

3. How many games, this season, have you been to? How many games have you tailgated at? If you have tailgated, name your beverage of choice. If you answered no to the previous questions, hang your head in shame, or at least give a good story about watching the game in enemy territory and giving the bouncer the finger when he asked you to quiet down.

I have not yet attended a game. And tailgating is lame around the Metrodome. I did watch the Gophers opener (Bowling Green) in enemy territory, sort of. I was in Wisconsin but watched the game in the comfort of my in-law's living room.

4. As the Big Ten Season kicks off, the Conference is in somewhat of a difficult position nationally. Needing some momentum after a horrid BCS performance, the Conference needed some momentum early in the season. It hasn't gotten it. The first three weeks have been abysmal. Is this just a down year for the Big Ten, is there a change Nationally that the Big Ten just hasn't picked up on, is there some truth to the "Big Ten Style of Play" that everyone harps on, or has college football simply caught up? What so you think and why? I may be beating a dead horse, but no one looks good this year and I'm at a loss as to why.

I think this is just a down year for overall talent. So many good players graduated last year and that left every team with major question marks.

• Ohio State graduated their entire offense
• Michigan graduated their entire defense
• Wisconsin lost Stocco and Joe Thomas

This year's conference has a lot of talented young kids and I think that the middle of the conference is better than it was before. Last year you had 3 great teams, 2 average teams (PSU, Pur) and the rest were really quite bad. This year I think we are lacking the great teams but you have 4 very good teams (1 may emerge as a great team) and then Pur, Mich St, Ind and Ill are all very much improved. You could have 8 teams that are bowl eligible by the end of the year. I wouldn't get too worked up about the Big Ten this year. Even if this is a "down year" it is still a power conference and will be just fine for years to come. We can't have a team in the BCS Championship game every year.

As far as the bowl games go I think that judging overall conference strength on that is vastly overrated. Was the Big 12 better than the Big Ten because Iowa and Minnesota lost to Texas and Texas Tech? I don't buy that. They lost simply because Texas was better than Iowa and TexTech was better than Minnesota. Overall I think the B10 was a much stronger conference than the B12 in 2006. Was the Big Ten better than the SEC because we were 2-1 in bowls last year? No, I would say the SEC was a deeper conference last year than the Big Ten.

The great Mike Tice once said "enjoy the season." I think those are wise word from a wise man an idiot.

Big Ten Blogger Roudtable - Part 3

As our friends at Michigan Sports Center prepare for Cripple Fight 2007, they were kind enough to take the time to give us this week's Roundtable discussion questions.

1. Now that two weeks of play are behind us, what is one encouraging surprise and one downing disappointment from your team? (Easy answer to the latter part of the question for Michigan bloggers)

Both parts of this question are rather easy for Gopher fans. I am very encouraged by the play of Adam Weber. The redshirt freshman has played well. In the Bowling Green game things started rough for the entire team and Weber compounded our ineptitude doing things like missing wide open receivers and fumbling the snap following a 58 yard Pinnix run. But what impressed me most was in the 3rd qtr Weber settled down and led the team to a comeback and gave us a chance to win the game.

Game 2 was better yet as he completed 65% of his passes for 271 yards and 4 TD in the air PLUS 98 rushing yards and a TD. This stat line earned him Co-Big Ten Player of the Week honors in only his 2nd start of his career.

Obviously he hasn't faced a Big Ten caliber defense yet but those are encouraging numbers for a kid with 4 years ahead of him. Weber has been more than Gopher fans could have hoped for at this point.

Disappointment? Well that has to be the defense. We should be used to hearing how the defense is going to "get after people" and "fly around the field" this year. All of that is coach-speak for we have no talent, we'll try to create some chaos and hope we don't get burned. We miss tackles at an alarming rate, our DL can't get pressure on the QB, our LBs are too slow and our DBs just can't cover anything. I for one had hoped that this group would be fundamentally better and improved because they returned several starters. But so far the results have been very disappointing. The encouraging thing to me is that the coaching staff isn't trying to convince of anything else. They know we are lacking in talent as shown by 2 true freshmen starting this week vs. Florida Atlantic and when interviewed Brewster talks about the need to bring in more talent through recruiting. Are you listening Willie Mobley?

2. A look at the current Big Ten standings shows things dead-locked record-wise for the most part. Once conference play actually begins, which two or three teams pull away from the rest of the pack?

Penn State and Wisconsin. Then I hope that one of the 2nd tier teams will make a leap and finish 3rd. It is always nice to see someone other than OSU, Mich, etc finish at or near the top. It doesn't look like the Golden Gophers are ready to make a jump to the top 4 but maybe Indiana or Purdue could leapfrog Mich and OSU this year. I know Indiana probably won't but let's all cheer on a super-surprise team in the Big Ten this year.

3. Has your team ever played in a game that was just downright boring and impossible to watch? I ask this because going into the Michigan-Notre Dame game, looking at it on paper, it is shaping up to be one of the ugliest we may see all year.

Many blow out games have been boring over the year but for the most part MN has been entertaining to watch and I see no reason this year will be any different. The last few years we have been able to watch what was hands down the best rushing attack in NCAA football. Barber and Maroney highlighted this recent run of runners and made every game fun to watch. Even before the Mason years the Wacker teams were high scoring and generally entertaining. I remember 1995 Purdue/MN combined for 3 B10 wins but the 39-38 Gopher victory was highly entertaining (Chris Darkins and Mike Alstott combined for 427 yards rushing and 6 TDs). Even in our leanest years most games have been entertaining to watch.

Big Ten Blogger Roudtable

1. Clearly, Week 1 was a huge week for upsets with Appalachin St. beating Michigan and Clemson beating FSU (though if that really shocked anyone I'd be surprised). What are your upset games for Week 2 and why?

TCU over Texas! I have fallen in love with the Horned Frogs this year as the best non-BCS team in the country. Forget your fascination with Rutgers (Big East I know, but you get the idea), Hawaii or Boise State; TCU is very good. They have a defense that is on par with anybody in the country regardless of conference size. They have a great running game to ease the maturation of their talented freshman QB. Do I really think they'll go into UT and come out with a win? That is a tall order, I have a lot of respect for the Longhorns. But I'm hoping this will be a great game. IF TCU can come away with upset they should run the table and have a legit argument that they should be in the national title game. Boise State was undefeated in 2006 but they didn't beat anybody of significance. If TCU can go into UT and beat the best of the Big 12, it will be hard to keep them from a date with USC or LSU assuming 1 loses along the way.

2. What do you think about the BTN? How'd it look? How were the announcers? Did the first weekend change your opinion of the BTN?

I have thoroughly have enjoyed the BTN thus far. I liked it from 2 angles. 1 - I had all of the Big Ten games right there to watch. Then the post game coverage was much better than I anticipated. 2 - now I get to watch the best games from the other conferences. In the past if there was a big SEC or Big 12 match up (say LSU/Florida or Texas/Oklahoma) on ABC on Saturday afternoon, I was usually forced to watch Michigan State vs. Indiana. Now I get the best of both worlds.

Since Saturday I've watched the replay of Michigan/App State and I watched the 1999 Minnesota/Penn State upset as well as various other programming recapping the coaches press conferences and looking ahead to next week's games.

3. Now that we're a game into the Season evaluate the Big Ten's strength.

Well, the blow to Michigan was a serious blow to the Big Ten overall. I think that Wisconsin and Penn State are solid and will do fine. Maybe Ohio State will get their offense figured out and they'll finish as a top 10 team.

But here is something I've come across today that I find fascinating. Not one Big Ten team is playing a ranked opponent in a non-conference game. The best we have to offer is Missouri, Oregon and Notre Dame. The former 2 may end up being ranked but the latter is very weak this year. This will not be a banner year for the Big Ten. Michigan was our best shot at getting into the BCS Championship and that ship has sailed.

Big Ten Blogger Roudtable - Part 2

Well the roundtable is back, hosted this time by Around the Oval. No need for a big introduction here are the questions and my fascinating answers...

1. Which player from your own team are you most looking forward to watching?

I think the player I am most looking forward to watching is WR-Ernie Wheelwright. From day one I have loved his size and speed, the guy just looks like a big time WR who can take over games (especially at this level). Of course he has never consistently lived up to his ability, which has frustrated the previous coaching staff as well as fans in Gopher Nation. As a freshman Wheelwright racked up 654 yards and 7 TDs, things were looking bright, but his yards and TDs have declined since then finishing last seasons with 26 catches, 437 yards and 5 TDs.

Much has been written about Coach Brewster being "in Ernie's pocket" all spring and summer, trying to squeeze some consistency and big time production out of this guy. Coach Dunbar's offense should be the perfect opportunity for Ernie to step up and be the guy that everyone has thought(hoped) he'd become. I expect big things this year.

2. Which player from another Big Ten team are you most looking forward to watching?

Michigan has a handful of players I'm looking forward to watching but I'm going with the Minnesota angle...

James Laurinaitis - possibly the best defensive player in the country (or some I'm told) and surprisingly he got away from Mason. I didn't take the time to analyze and breakdown most of the other Big Ten teams so I didn't really see Laurinaitis last year. I'm anxious to see how good he is. It will serve as a reminder just how important it will be for Brewster to keep the best MN has to offer in state. I understand the theory that if you can go to OSU or Notre Dame, why would you stay at mediocre Minnesota. But that has to change, Brewster has to build this team up and keep players here.


3. If your team was an action movie star, who would it be?

Action movie star? To me the Golden Gophers are most represented by Charlton Heston (Spartacus counts as action right?). We used to be really good, well respected and considered one of the best. Now we are often comical and not taken very seriously. But I do know that after we beat the Badgers this year you will have to pry Paul Bunyan's Ax from our "cold, dead hands!"

Big Ten Blogger Roudtable - Part 1

Well, Gopher Nation fans it is time to start thinking about Big Ten Football. Today begins the Big Ten Media so the Big Ten Bloggers is kicking off their roundtable to coincide. As an inagural member I am putting my fingers to the keyboard. At the bottom I will link the other Big Ten Bloggers responses to the very same questions...

Badger Sports - originator of the opening roundtable
Paging Jim Shikenjanski (MN)
Hoosier Report
Black Shoes Diaries (PSU)
Around the Oval (OSU)
Lake the Posts (NW)
Run up the Score (PSU)
There Is No Name On My Jersey (PSU)
Buckeye Lane
Maize n Brew (Mich)


1a. The press and the coaches will be predicting the Big Ten champ at the Hyatt Regency in Chicago on Wednesday. That's fine, but overdone. In lieu of boilerplate predictions of who will come out on top, which Big Ten team will be the most surprising? Remember, surprises can be good or bad; the underdog who comes out of nowhere to share the title is just as surprising as the favorite who winds up with five losses and no bowl bid.

I've thought about this for quite a while now. I toyed with Purdue or Indiana because they return a quality QB (which is a rarity in this year's Big 10) along with a high number of overall returning starters. And I wish I could tell you that I firmly believed Minnesota was going to have a 5-3 year, even 4-4 would be the surprise of the Big 10. My surprise team is Ohio State.

I know they are your classic "we don't rebuild, we reload" team. But they lost a LOT from last year and I think there will be a bigger let down than OSU fans are anticipating. My gut tells me that the next wave of talent is not a group that will work harder than anyone else to avenge the egg they laid vs. Florida. Instead they will feel entitled to playing time and expect wins because they are THE Ohio State University. There is a very fine line between confidence that carries you to victories and entitled-arogance that leads to poor execution, mental mistakes and let downs.

Would 6-2 in conference finishing tied for 2nd be surprising? No, not with as much as they lost and the strength of Michigan, Wisconsin and Penn State. Here is my bold prediction, OSU goes 5-3 in conference, 1-2 vs. the other big 3 (@Mich, Wis, @PSU) and drops one shocker (@MN, @Pur, NW, MSU or Ill). I think that a 5-3 record finishing tied for 4th would be a surprising finish, although exciting for many other Big Ten programs.

1b. Imagine it's December, and the consensus in the media is that your team's season was "surprising." Is this a Good Thing or a Bad Thing? What would have to happen for you to consider your team's season surprising?

Well since just about everyone is predicting a 10th or 11th place finish, anything over 2 wins would be surprising. But really for people to be talking about the Golden Gophers and their upstart program under first year head coach Tim Brewster, I think they have to put together a 5-3 conference season. 4-4 might do it, but since we are dreaming lets go with 5-3.

Is this realistic, NO. Is it in the relm of possibility? I think so. Home games with Purdue and Illinois are winable. Road games at Northwestern, Indiana and Iowa are also winable games.

But to truly be considered a surprise team I think the Gophers HAVE To stage a big time upset. That means a win over Ohio State, @Michigan or Wisconsin. Beating Ohio State would be huge because there are a number of important recruits in town that weekend. I don't hold out much hope for a road win to regain the Little Brown Jug. But most of all I'd love to take down the Badgers and bring Paul's Axe back home.


2. A preseason player of the year will also be dubbed in Chicago. For your team to succeed, which player or unit is going to have to put forth a "player of the year" performance? What's the one position that would take your team to the next level if it performs above expectations?

QB is the obvious answer. A new QB in a new offense is going to make things very difficult for this offense to get going. But I'm going to the other side of the ball. The Gopher pass defense (and I use defense loosely) has been putrid for several seasons. I'm looking for a DB to step up and be a big time playmaker for 12 games. The likely candidates are either CB-Jamal Harris or S-Dom Barber. My dream is for one of them to end up on an All-Big Ten team.

3. Which Big Ten team's out-of-conference schedule would you most want to have this year? Why? Do you think your team will have out-of-conference losses this year?

I like Michigan State's OOC schedule. I understand the need to schedule a couple wins and they have that in UAB and Bowling Green. But then I love taking on some decent teams from major conferences. Pittsburgh is solid and then I would LOVE to get Notre Dame on the schedule. I have never traveled to watch the Gophers on the road, but I would put my life on hold to make the trip to South Bend.

4. Here's a chance to look like a complete genius in a few months: pick the biggest in-conference upset that will happen this season. Justify your prediction!

I'm going to play "homer" here and pick Minnesota over Ohio State. As I mentioned above I think OSU will drop one shocker. Realistically, their next game @Purdue is the more likely candidate. There is more roster turnover with OSU than with anybody else in the Big Ten and taking them on early is the key. Minnesota will be adjusting to a new coach and system, but they should have had 3 non-conference wins and a home game vs. Purdue to build some confidence and rhythm heading into this game.

5. Say something nice about the Big Ten school whose name precedes yours alphabetically. Say something mean about the one that comes after.

Michigan State...hmmmm....I'm not very good at this saying something nice thing...well,

• they aren't Michigan?
• they have a good basketball program?
• they make being green look easy?
• Here we go...As a Minnesota fan I should appreciate, recognize and congratulate them on winning the NCAA Frozen Four (that's hockey). Really I am one of the few up here who cares very little about hockey, but I'll try to act like I do.

Northwestern. I'm much better at making fun of other teams. Northwestern is kind of easy. I'm thankful that NW is in the Big Ten because they are one of the few programs over the last decade who have been worse than MN in football and basketball. Thank you, it is always nice to know that we won't be the 11th team in the Big Ten.

For instance 2006-07 basketball?

• Minnesota 3-13 (OUCH)
• Northwestern? 2-14 (thank you, Wildcats)
  

Basketball since the Clem years has a 12 game lead over NW in total Big Ten Standings. Football hasn't been as nice, but a 3 game lead in the Mason years.

6. USC: great football program, or greatest football program? Also, how about that SEC? Damn, those guys are fast!

Hard to argue against them being the greatest. If they weren't on the west coast I don't think it would be much of a question. Unfortunately they play in the Pac 10 which is the most overrated of the BCS conferences in my mind. Ultimately I admire what Pete Carrol has done there and I'll grant them "greatest" status.

The SEC? Is Floriday Atlantic or North Dakota State in the SEC? See I'm a Gopher fan and I've seen 2 SEC teams over the past 20 years. And we are 2-0 so I don't see what the big deal is. We "rolled" all over the Tide in on 2004 and the mighty leg of Nystrom sliced up the Razorbacks in 2002. Overall we are 5-3 vs. the SEC (yes that is 8 total games in our 120+ year history), if we can help it won't don't play them tough schools.