Well you may have noticed that the blog got pushed to the back burner all week. The World Series captivated us and nights I were free my co-writer Kam was busy and vice versa. We do have lives you know. Here is the super-late week 9 power rankings (remember what happened last week? This should help if you don’t.)
Josh Kam
1. MSU 1. MSU
2. Nebraska +1 2. OSU
3. OSU -1 3. Nebraska
4. Wisconsin +3 4. Wisconsin +2
5. Minnesota -1 5. Penn State +6
6. Penn State +6 6. Maryland -1
7. Maryland -2 7. Iowa
8. Northwestern +1 8. Minnesota -4
9. Iowa -1 9. Northwestern
10. Rutgers -4 10. Rutgers -2
11. Illinois +3 11. Purdue +1
12. Purdue -1 12. Illinois +2
13. Michigan -3 13. Michigan -3
14. Indiana -1 14. Indiana -1
K – MSU had a nice win over a rival. OSU struggled more than I thought they would and could be vulnerable away from the Shoe. Huskers are rock solid right now. Your boys in Madison were the team of the week with that impressive win over Maryland.
J – I teased earlier in the week about flipping Nebraska and Ohio State and your road game observation for OSU had me pull the trigger since Nebraska gave MSU one hell of a game in East Lansing.
K – 5 through 9 is a jumbled mess. Just throw darts at logos to rank them.
J – Are we reading too much into Penn State?
K – Probably. The hole 5 through 9 group give me little faith in the bowl season. They cannot complete with the few decent teams in the Big Ten. All of them are just shuffling for crap bowls which they will most likely lose.
J – Take your Zoloft? Actually, I’ll have to take one since I agree with everything you said. All of them have terrible flaws:
- Penn State – no OL or rushing game
- Maryland – not physical enough for stronger teams and not good enough defensively
- Iowa – horrible coaching and god-awful quarterback
- Minnesota – offense is not a complete product yet, that leaves them in tight games
- Northwestern – ditto Minnesota, but more pronounced because they can’t put up as many points.
K – I appreciate you going in order of MY rankings, basically tipping your hand that I put them in the correct order and admitting your are a moron but you need to stop with the bullet points. I don’t have time for a college professor style power point. Rutgers, Purdue, Illinois, Michigan and Indiana would be sub .500 in the WAC…which is a defunct league.
J – Hard to argue that, curious what Rutgers will do in their final four. UW and MSU look very difficult but Indiana and Maryland are winnable. Still a shot at 7-5, which considering their schedule, is a big win.
K – In Columbus and in Lincoln are not good barometers of middle talent (or slightly below average) teams since the games turn ugly so quickly. At least they have something of an identity with their defense…even if it is struggling right now.
J – That makes me a bit more optimistic than the other teams in this group.
Well that was a fun rewind. Here is an abbreviated guide to this weekend:
Game of the week: Maryland at Penn State
My how the tables have turned. After a beating in Madison, the Terps season is now on the brink – or so it feels. Penn State meanwhile just had the moralist moral victory of all time against Ohio State. They have to feel a bigger bounce in their step this week and hope to finish strong and make a bowl.
Noon, ESPN 2
Sleeper: Northwestern at Iowa
Thanks to Minnesota’s loss, Iowa controls their own fate (some how) in the West. Northwestern also has a little reprieve thanks to the Gopher’s coming up short in Illinois. Yes they have two losses and yes those are against Nebraska and Minnesota but they also have a tiebreaker win against Wisconsin. They have to hope a lot of teams finish with two losses and the west becomes a nightmare to figure out through tiebreakers. Either way, a lot on the line in Iowa City tomorrow.
Noon, BTN
Don’t Ignore: Wisconsin at Rutgers
Last time the Badgers were on the road, they got dominated by Northwestern. Let’s see how this team can look away from Camp Randal before crowning them a la Denny Greene. After two humiliating road games, the Scarlet Knights look to get back to basics at home – where they’ve played a lot better.
Noon, ESPN
Snoozer: Illinois at Ohio State
OSU needs style points after a near miss against Penn State and Illinois is still Illinois, even with the huge win against the Gophers.
8, ABC
Upset Watch:
Right End – Michigan’s defense isn’t half bad but they just took a physical beating a week ago and now have to take on shifty Tevin Coleman from Indiana.
IU at UM, 3:30, BTN
Wrong End – How may times must Iowa be favored against Northwestern and lose before Vegas stops picking them as the favorite!?
Elsewhere:
Purdue at Nebraska, 3:30, ABC – with the finish line, and a trip to the title game in sight, it is hard to see the Huskers blowing a home game against a soft opponent.
Gambling:
Illinois at Ohio State
OSU -28.5, Over / Under 65
Really think OSU looks for some style points like TCU’s 82. Not saying they will go that far, but I’m still very skeptical of Illinois after their win than leaving the OSU bandwagon afteir their OT thriller. Take the Bucks and the over (I think 56-14 sound like a good score).
Indiana at Michigan
UM -7, O/U 52.5
Hoosiers have not looked good without Nate Sudfeld and Michigan never looks good. Despite giving a slim chance at an upset, I like Michigan by 10 in this game but expect it to be low scoring. 21-10 feels right. UM with the under.
Iowa vs Northwestern
UI -4, O/U 42
Smells like something to stay away from. I do like the under though. I don’t see both teams getting into the 20s with their lousy offenses (and above-average defenses). I suppose a true degenerate would take the points since it is smarter to bet on the better coached team.
Maryland at Penn State
PSU -3.5, O/U 47.5
PSU has one of the best linebackers in the nation no one wants to talk about in Mike Hull. I think he disrupts the Terps enough for Penn State to get a huge home win after the emotional loss. I think this will be a tight one though. PSU can’t run and that is what usually gives Maryland fits. 31-24 and 24-21 both popped into my head. One score clears that low over/under and the spread and the other does neither. Let’s hope for the 31-24 outcome then fellow gamblers!
Nebraska vs Purdue
NU -23.5, O/U 60.5
Huskers would have cleared this spread against Rutgers but a very late score by the Knights cost us the spread but gave us the over. Since Rutgers is a little better than Purdue in my estimation, I think we can apply what we learned. Take the Huskers but go with the under.
Wisconsin at Rutgers
UW -13.5, O/U 52
Yahoo had this game off and ESPN posted the 13.5, so this might not be at every sports book while you legally gamble (or talk to Dave at your local gin-joint – note this guide is for fun!). I thought Maryland had the talent to hang with Wisconsin and was sorely mistaken. I think the misery for Rutgers continues as UW covers that two TD spread ESPN found and scores enough to clear that over.
Lightning Round:
Illinois/OSU – OSU, Over
Indiana/Michigan – UM, Under
Iowa/Northwestern – Under, NU (Degenerate tip)
Maryland/Penn State – PSU, Over
Nebraska/Purdue – NU, Under
Wisconsin/Rutgers – UW, Over
Big Ten and Counting 