Routs, rivalries, history, and more. The Big Ten’s final week was an exciting one as five trophies were on the line and The Game was in action in Ann Arbor. The bowl picture became a little clearer thanks to a few of these games and the title game was finally set as the east went down to the final weekend.
Team of the week: Michigan State – A+ – Tempting to give it to Ohio State but MSU had the pressures of needing to win to make Indy. They handled it perfectly. They racked up 436 yards on an above-average PSU defense, went 8/11 on third, forced 4 turnovers and had a whopping 55 points. The last time the proud Penn State program gave up half a hundred? 1988 at West Virginia. MSU locked down the east in style and should have a world of confidence when they take on Iowa.
Illinois – F- – The rare F minus!!! What a week for Illinois. Due to a lingering political situation with the chancellor’s office, the AD-ship and seemingly everything else, UI panicked and decided to keep Bill Cubit. The Illini promptly went out and scored 14 in a loss to rival Northwestern, possibly keeping them from a bowl at 5-7. They averaged 24 points a game this year, 97th in the nation and that is even with a boost of 96 points in the opening two games. Cubit, by the way, was the offensive coordinator on Beckman’s staff. This is going to be a disaster.
Indiana – A- – Hoosiers had a lot on the line in their annual rivalry game with Purdue. A chance at a rare 3-game winning streak in the series as well as a bowl provided some pressure but Wilson’s club responded well. The poured it on the hapless Boilers to the tune of 659 yards and 54 points. Nate Sudfeld was simply amazing. Gave the minus because the defense did allow 486 yards and 36 points but we sort of expect that from this team by now, right?
Iowa – B – Coach Ferentz admitted in the post game show that due to the horrible wind during the game, he felt like the only way to lose was to give the Huskers short fields so he shut it down in the fourth. Makes sense but it did yield a strange stat split. Iowa was out gained by nearly 200 yards. The difference was two long TD runs by Jordan Canzeri and four interceptions, one of which was a pick six. Nebraska is better than their record and Iowa survived a difficult opponent in bad weather. It may not have been a work of art, but it was a very Iowa style win.
Maryland – D+ – Down 31-13 at the half they had a great second half rally to win. Nice job finishing a very long season on a high note. Senior Brandon Ross had a game for the ages to finish his career.
Michigan – D – Obviously losing the third quarter 14-0 and the second half 28-3 made it a blowout but this was all about UM’s lack of depth and inability to make adjustments at halftime. Remember, 30 minutes in this was only a 14-10 game. UM’s rushing attack hasn’t been as strong the last few weeks and once Michigan lost that balance, they became susceptible to defeat. Minnesota almost caught ’em, Indiana almost caught ’em and Ohio State did catch ’em. Still a great season at 9-3 and a chance for double-digit wins in Harbaugh’s debut.
Minnesota – F – Taking on arch rival Wisconsin’s worst team in years with a chance to get back the axe for the first time in over a decade the Gophers stunk up the joint. 5 turnovers and 257 rushing yards on 62! carries added up to a ten point loss. At 5-7 there is still a chance to make a bowl but it doesn’t feel like UM has earned it, especially with how flat they looked on senior day in the Twin Cities. This is going to be a painful one for Gopher nation, especially if Chryst builds up Wisconsin.
Nebraska – C+ – Defense played a nice game and the offense moved the ball well but yet again horribly timed interceptions by Tommy Armstrong Jr. and some questionable play calling doomed the Huskers. This may not be your daddy’s Nebraska team but this most certainly isn’t your daddy’s 5-7 ball club. They are much, much better than that record indicates.
Northwestern – C- – It is a testament to how good this defense is that they can play a c minus game and still win by two scores over lowly Illinois. The offense produced just 24 points, 350 yards, 6/19 on third and had two giveaways yet the defense was as salty as ever. The win is Northwestern’s 10th of the year. Just the fourth time in school history they have had double digit wins and only the third time they have done it in the regular season. Well done by Fitz’s gang.
Ohio State – A – The light has been switched on. The question now is…too little, too late? The only way I see them making the tournament is like this…
- Two spots are locks:
- Oklahoma
- Big Ten title game winner
- That leaves these teams in the mix for the final 2:
- Clemson
- Stanford
- OSU
- UNC
- Alabama
- If Clemson/Alabama wins, they are in for sure
- If Alabama loses and Stanford wins, I think Stanford gets in over OSU
- If Clemson loses and Stanford wins, I think UNC slips in based on fewer losses than Stanford
- If both Clemson/Alabama loses and Stanford wins, I think Stanford gets in and UNC slips in based on being a conf. champ
- If both Clemson/Alabama and Stanford loses, I think UNC and OSU get in
That’s it, that is the magic formula. We know this committee values conference championships and as it stands, OSU will not even be a division winner. If you value the regular season, then OSU cannot jump any conference champion. Here’s what mucks it up. Can Clemson still make it if they lose to UNC? How far does number one drop? Would they leave North Carolina out and keep Clemson in? Things are about to get crazy.
Penn State – F – This team is neither talented enough or well coached enough to compete against the cream of the crop in the Big Ten or nationally. They were held to an average of 14.6 points per game in their five losses – Temple, OSU, Northwestern, Michigan, and MSU – all of whom have solid defenses. It comes down to line play again. For two straight years this unit has underperformed. Is it personnel or coaching? That is what Franklin is paid to figure out.
Purdue – F+ – The plus is because the Boilers at least moved the ball a fair amount and put up 36 points, their third best output on the year. Of course they did get blown out and gave up half a hundred but you know, you can’t have your cake and eat it too if you are a Purdue football fan.
Rutgers – D- – They were up 31-13 at half against an awful Maryland team and lost. That is what happens when you give up 656 yards and 400 rushing yards. Good riddance to this staff that sucked the fun out of RU’s season.
Wisconsin – A – They saved their best for last. In a dominating win in Minneapolis, Bucky got the axe for the 12th straight year. The famous Badger running game which as struggled all year finally got going with 257 yards, 155 of them by reserve Dare Ogunbowale. This isn’t the sexiest nine-win team in the world but Chryst got every ounce of juice out of this club in what was a very injury plagued and shaky quarterback-play led campaign. Hats off to that defensive unit that played like rockstars all year.
Game of the Week: Admittedly biased but I thought seeing the Hawkeyes survive a tough road environment thanks to some spectacular plays (i.e. the pick six and the 68 yard TD run) made for a great black Friday.
Why did I watch this? Award: The MSU game turned into a mid 90s tech stock ticker. It just kept going up and up and up! Plus Penn State was doing Penn State things all day as that one got out of hand quickly.
Gambling Report Card:
- Illinois vs Northwestern, NU (-3.5), Under (42)
“Wildcat defense locks this thing down, NU covers and the final is 21-10, nowhere near the over.” The final was 24-14. Double up!
- Indiana at Purdue, IU (-7), Over (68.5)
“Hoosiers cover easily and put up 49+ alone, leading to an easy over.” They scored 54 points and Purdue’s respectable 36 led to crushing the over. I wish I could bet on Indiana football like 15 more games this year. This has been money in the bank.
- Iowa at Nebraska, Under (58)
The forecast was miserable and I had no idea who was going to win since Nebraska is very frisky for an under .500 team so I did the smart thing. It paid off, the teams combined for 48 points.
- Maryland at Rutgers, Points (RU -1), Over (56)
With defenses this bad the over was always a smart bet. Despite a worse record, I thought Maryland was more talented and after an ugly opening half, that talent did pay off as the Terps came back to win 46-41, giving us a third double up!
- Michigan vs Ohio State, UM (Pick ’em), Under (46.5)
In hindsight this was always a risky pick because you are counting on the Bucks continuing their season long sleepwalk. Of course a disheartening loss and taking on their biggest rival would wake them up.
- Michigan State vs Penn State, MSU (-11), Over (46.5)
I had serious doubts about PSU’s ability to score against quality defenses and they didn’t disappoint. I factored in the over by MSU putting up a big number (35+). Well they got the plus part right, dropping double nickels on the Lions to win going away, 55-16. A fourth double up!?! Without looking, this might be a record for league play.
- Minnesota vs Wisconsin, Points (UW -2.5), Under (43)
All good things must come to an end. In this case it was our hot gambling and not the Badger’s run in the Axe game. UW sent UM out with a bitter 31-21 loss in what looked like the Gopher’s best shot at winning this game in several years.
Week Record: 9-4-0
Season Record: 99-76-0
Big Ten and Counting 