Basically, college football is to me what cocaine is to Paris Hilton- I go through withdrawal without it. Therefore, as the season begins (and that long offseason finally ends) I’m covering not one but two games this week. For preview one, Ohio State vs. Marshall go here.
Throughout the season, I’ll be bringing you these informative yet blunt game previews of every contest I cover; with a heavy focus on Northwestern, Illinois, Notre Dame, and the Big Ten in general.
From a national relevance standpoint, Virginia Tech vs. Boise St. is the game of the week, but from a fun-to-watch standpoint, I think Saturday’s shootout in South Bend, Notre Dame versus Purdue, is the winner hands down. Unless you’re really into punting, then the game will likely do nothing for you. This season opening battle between two “Crossroads of America” rivals will feature two dynamic spread-option offenses, minimal breaks between plays, and quite possibly 700+ combined passing yards.
If you have a Labor Day weekend cookout that might preclude from watching this game, skip it!
By Paul M. Banks
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Well, I guess there’s no point in watching the Big Ten Network division announcement show now? The divisions are already leaked:
- Michigan, Nebraska, Iowa, Michigan State, Northwestern and Minnesota.
- Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin, Purdue, Indiana and Illinois
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The Big Ten Conference will announce football division alignments to begin with the 2011 season tonight at 6 p.m. CT.
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Sometimes a situation just gets the best of you. What happens after that is a test of character, strength and just what kind of a man you are.
By all accounts, Purdue starting quarterback Robert Marve has passed those tests.
After what can only be described as a tumultuous tenure in Coral Gables at the University of Miami, Marve seems to have found a home in West Lafayette, as well as the ability to focus on the things that matter.
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The list of quarterbacks with true NFL prospects is somewhat low in the Big Ten right now, but Iowa’s Ricky Stanzi seems to have a lot of what is needed for those scouts.
He has size. He is the best, pure-pocket passer in the league.
And now, this season, the senior is poised to lead the Hawkeyes to another BCS bowl game and, if some predictions are to be believed, the BCS National Title game.
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It’s the most unheralded position on the field. Some would say the most boring. But they, the Penn State offensive linemen, are just as critical as the quarterback (a position in transition in State College this fall) in getting accomplished the things offensive coordinator Jay Paterno is trying to do. O Linemen don’t even have a statistic (unless you count pancake blocks) to reference to hang their numerical productivity hat. But Happy Valley has one of the Big Ten and the nation’s best in Center/Guard Stefen Wisniewski.
I recently spoke with the All-Big Ten and third team All-American from last season, asking him what he thinks he needs to work on to reach the next level.
By Paul M. Banks
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Illinois‘ Mikel LeShoure, Wisconsin’s John Clay, and Notre Dame‘s Armando Allen (click their respective names for profiles/exclusive interviews with each running back) have been named to the list of 49 candidates for the Doak Walker Award, presented annually to the nation’s top college running back.
Clay, the reigning Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, led the Big Ten and ranked eighth in the country with 1,517 rushing yards in 2009. His 18 rushing touchdowns also led the Big Ten and tied for seventh in the nation.
Clay who has also been named to the preseason Watch Lists for the Walter Camp Award and Maxwell Awards. He was also selected as a Playboy All-American. It’s the second straight year he’s been named to the Doak Walker Award Watch List. Ron Dayne is the only Wisconsin player to win the Doak Walker Award, bringing home the trophy in 1999. Dayne was also a finalist for the award in 1998 while Anthony Davis (2001), Brian Calhoun (2005) and P.J. Hill (2006) have all been semifinalists.
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The resurrection of Indiana basketball is in its third season under Tom Crean. Bumps in the road were to be expected and that is exactly what has happened for the Hoosiers as the program has experienced their worst two seasons in school history.
The Sports Bank‘s 99 team college basketball previews in 99 days takes us to Hoosierland. Indiana is the fourth Big Ten to be ranked in the bottom seventeen out of all 72 power conference teams and the top 27 mid-majors. Click here if you missed teams #84-#99.
By: David Kay
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I gave this interview to college football zealots.com who asked me to preview my alma mater, the University of Illinois for them.
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Talor Battle is really, really good. Penn State is not. The Sports Bank’s 99 team college basketball preview in 99 days ranks the power conference schools and top 27 mid-majors in reverse power ranking order. Click here if you missed teams #87-#99.
By: David Kay
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Here is the first “really?” prediction in my off-season “99 in 99” in which I am ranking the 72 power conference teams and top 27 mid-major college basketball programs in reverse power ranking order. Michigan vastly disappointed last season and now faces the challenge of replacing their top two players.
By: David Kay
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It is Nebraska‘s swan song in the Big 12 as they will be moving to the Big Ten for the 2011-2012 season. For a team that has not won an outright conference title since 1916, the Cornhuskers have more times than not been an easy victory for their opponents. Our 99 team college basketball preview in 99 days continues with their last hurrah. Click here for The Sports Bank‘s previous “99 in 99″ previews.
By: David Kay
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On Monday, a formal announcement of the coming together of the four most-storied college basketball programs in the state of Indiana will be made. Athletic Directors from the four programs: Barry Collier of Butler, Fred Glass of Indiana, Jack Swarbrick of Notre Dame and Purdue’s Morgan Burke will convene in the lobby of Conseco Fieldhouse to formalize a doubleheader event in Indianapolis.
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The college football season is right around the corner as camps are opening all across the country. So what better time to start our team-by-team college basketball previews. Yes, college BASKETBALL. The season is still well over three months from tipping off but I have a Brett Favre-sized itch and dammit, I am going to scratch it.
For the next 99 days, I will rank the top 99 teams in reverse power ranking order. Those 99 teams will be chosen from the 72 power conference teams and top 27 mid-majors. Let’s get to it.
By: David Kay
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As I went through my Big Ten Media Day audio and transcript of legendary Penn State Head Coach Joe Paterno, I thought “wow, some of my media brethren are ghouls. There’s a lot in here about death and illness.”
And this is very important because the 83-year-old Paterno is THE “get” of Big Ten Media Days. He’s like a college football version of Yoda, Jackie Mason and Rodney Dangerfield combined.
He summed up the day’s theme best at the dais:
“what did Mark Twain say, the rumor of my death has been over-exaggerated or something, I forget. I used to know a little bit more about those. I really ?? I didn’t lose any time. I had, as I said, the problem I had was not having control of some things, and I had to be careful that I didn’t get myself in a position where I would embarrass myself.”
JoePa was so detailed about his “ailments,” because the media fixated on it.
By Paul M. Banks
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The USA Today/Coaches poll, the lesser of the college football polls was released this morning. Alabama leads the way at #1, and four Big Ten squads (Ohio State is #2) are ranked among the top 25. The Big Ten leads all conferences with four teams ranked in the top 15 and the conference joins the Big 12 and SEC in featuring multiple teams in the top 10. The SEC has six teams in the top 25, the Big 12 has three, and the ACC four. Florida, Texas and Boise St. round out the top 5.
Rose Bowl winning Ohio State enters the 2010 season ranked second overall after finishing with an 11-2 record and securing its fifth straight Big Ten Championship last season. Ohio State knocked off Oregon (ranked 11th in the 2010 preseason poll) in last year’s Rose Bowl Game and was voted as the preseason favorite to win the 2010 Big Ten title. The Buckeyes aim to match the record of six straight conference crowns, first accomplished by Ohio State from 1972-77.
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Today, the Big Ten Conference announced that Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, home of the Colts, has been chosen as the proposed site for the inaugural Big Ten Football Championship Game, to be played in December of 2011.
The conference office now begins a 30-day period to negotiate a one-year agreement with Indiana Sports Corp and Lucas Oil Stadium to host the game. Once the 2011 agreement is in place, the conference office will utilize the next year to determine location of the Big Ten Football Championship Game in 2012 and beyond.
By Paul M. Banks
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As Conference Commissioner Jim Delany noted at Media Day, BIG changes are on the way in the Big Ten. There will be a conference championship game in 2011, a nine game conference schedule will be here soon, and we’ll need to split into two divisions in order to make that happen. So how will be go about forming these two divisions?
By Paul M. Banks
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1. Ohio State- Yes, it’s kind of boring that the 5 time consecutive conference champion is the overwhelming favorite yet again. But this is not a boring team, they’re a legitimate national title contender. Half their secondary is nominated for the Thorpe Award (nation’s best DB), half their DL should be taken in the first couple rounds of the NFL Draft, They have the two best LBs in the Big Ten…well you get the idea. Because it’s the same story on the other side of the ball too. The Big Ten is once again there’s for the taking.
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While the coaches were guilty of a lot of your typical coach-speak — interjected with humor and frivolity too, though — the heavy hitters at the first day of Media Day were certainly Bill Carollo (the Big Ten Coordinator of Officials), Mark Silverman (The Big Ten Network President) and Jim Delany (the Big Ten Conference commissioner).
Carollo and Silverman were two of the most interesting guests of the entire two-day process, and when Delany wasn’t busy talking about expansion and the Big Ten Championship Game (coming to you live from somewhere in December of 2011!), he had some nuggets as well.
Some of the more interesting tidbits below the jump.
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