Colorado and Northwestern are two power five conference teams that both went 1-11 last season. As would be expected, and justified, both programs changed coaches this season (Although with NU, it took Earth shattering revelations for that to happen). David Braun and Deion Sanders took their teams in opposite directions this season.
And now, one of them is going bowling, while the other will be home for the holidays.
And who was the entire college football world talking about, during the first month of the season? The team that will not be playing the 13th game.
Northwestern bowl projections: go here
Northwestern vs Illinois Game Preview, Prediction, FYIs: go here
The non-stop hype machine that surrounded Coach Prime was unlike anything we’ve seen since Johnny Football or Tim Tebow. It was that annoyingly incessant and utterly obnoxious. You can honestly be a true blue Neon Deion fan, and still have thought all of that hoopla and hype was way over-the-top.
You can have no really strong opinion on Deion, either way, and still be happy about his team’s collapse, because now you simply don’t have to hear about him all the time.
Meanwhile, back in September and early October no one was talking about Northwestern, and absolutely no one was going to their games (ok, that hasn’t changed, and that happens every year…seriously the NU fan base just simply does not show up).
It was easy to understand why no one believed in the Wildcats (I picked them in the preseason to only win three games), given how they were 4-20 over the span of the last two seasons, and won three games or less in three of the past four seasons.
Yet here the Cats are, despite the hazing scandal, and all the fallout from it, having bowl eligibility with a game to spare. If they win the Land of Lincoln Trophy game on Saturday, they’ll be guaranteed a winning season on 2023.
It is easy to see why David Braun had the interim tag removed. It is well deserved, to say the least. And honestly, you have to think about Big Ten Coach of the Year consideration for him now too.
It is amazing what he has been able to do.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He’s written for numerous publications, including the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. He regularly appears on NTD News and WGN News Now, while writing for the International Baseball Writers Association of America. You can follow the website on Twitter.