31°Good 2009 for Big Ten football?
03:35 PM
Dec 14
2009
Dec 14
2009
So how did the Big Ten fare in the 2009 football season?
Pretty good.
I’d put the conference behind the SEC and Big 12.
The trend continues for the SEC, which could have a national champion for the fourth straight year if Alabama beats Texas in the BCS Title Game.
Florida also reached a BCS bowl game.
I’d put the Big 12 second, because of the Longhorns participation in the BCS National Championship Game. Nebraska seems to be righting the ship and Oklahoma State is usually solid.
With The Ohio State University and University of Iowa in BCS bowl games, that strengthens the Big Ten.
Here are the positives in the Big Ten
1. Two teams in bowl games is good.
2. Both OSU and Penn State are in the top five nationally in defense.
3. The Hawkeyes resurgence. Iowa is usually one of the better programs and when the Hawkeyes have a good year, that helps.
4. Three teams with 10 wins and another — Wisconsin — at nine.
5. The Buckeyes, Hawkeyes and Nittany Lions are all ranked in the top-11 nationally.
Now the negatives
1. Is it a good thing that three teams are in the top 11? Parity was definitely around in the conference this season.
2. The lack of big-game wins.
OSU fell to what many consider a “down” Southern California team, 18-15; Minnesota fell to California 35-21; Illinois lost to Cincinnati 49-36; Purdue dropped a 38-36 decision to Oregon and Penn State didn’t even face a top-20 team outside of the conference. The signature win was Iowa beating Arizona 27-17. Michigan’s 38-34 victory would have been more impressive if the Fighting Irish hadn’t lost their last four games.
3. Michigan State lost to Central Michigan 29-27 and Purdue fell to Northern Illinois 28-21. Yes, an occasional Mid-American upset over a Big Ten happens, but not many times doesn’t it happen twice in a year.
4. OSU fans won’t like it, but the conference need for Michigan to start winning again. The Wolverines are one of the top programs in college football, yet haven’t made a bowl game the last two years. Illinois is another disappointment after reaching the Rose Bowl in 2008.
5. While the Big Ten had two teams in the top five nationally, Wisconsin is the top offense at 32.8 per game — good for 21st, behind such teams as Troy, Southern Mississippi and Central Michigan.
But the only judgment about the Big Ten this season is what the teams do later this month and into January. Last season, the conference went 1-6 in bowl games.
Furthermore, the Big Ten is 0-3 in the last three Rose Bowls, being outscored 119-59.
The Buckeyes are winless in their last three BCS bowl games — falling by a combined count of 103-59.
Pretty good.
I’d put the conference behind the SEC and Big 12.
The trend continues for the SEC, which could have a national champion for the fourth straight year if Alabama beats Texas in the BCS Title Game.
Florida also reached a BCS bowl game.
I’d put the Big 12 second, because of the Longhorns participation in the BCS National Championship Game. Nebraska seems to be righting the ship and Oklahoma State is usually solid.
With The Ohio State University and University of Iowa in BCS bowl games, that strengthens the Big Ten.
Here are the positives in the Big Ten
1. Two teams in bowl games is good.
2. Both OSU and Penn State are in the top five nationally in defense.
3. The Hawkeyes resurgence. Iowa is usually one of the better programs and when the Hawkeyes have a good year, that helps.
4. Three teams with 10 wins and another — Wisconsin — at nine.
5. The Buckeyes, Hawkeyes and Nittany Lions are all ranked in the top-11 nationally.
Now the negatives
1. Is it a good thing that three teams are in the top 11? Parity was definitely around in the conference this season.
2. The lack of big-game wins.
OSU fell to what many consider a “down” Southern California team, 18-15; Minnesota fell to California 35-21; Illinois lost to Cincinnati 49-36; Purdue dropped a 38-36 decision to Oregon and Penn State didn’t even face a top-20 team outside of the conference. The signature win was Iowa beating Arizona 27-17. Michigan’s 38-34 victory would have been more impressive if the Fighting Irish hadn’t lost their last four games.
3. Michigan State lost to Central Michigan 29-27 and Purdue fell to Northern Illinois 28-21. Yes, an occasional Mid-American upset over a Big Ten happens, but not many times doesn’t it happen twice in a year.
4. OSU fans won’t like it, but the conference need for Michigan to start winning again. The Wolverines are one of the top programs in college football, yet haven’t made a bowl game the last two years. Illinois is another disappointment after reaching the Rose Bowl in 2008.
5. While the Big Ten had two teams in the top five nationally, Wisconsin is the top offense at 32.8 per game — good for 21st, behind such teams as Troy, Southern Mississippi and Central Michigan.
But the only judgment about the Big Ten this season is what the teams do later this month and into January. Last season, the conference went 1-6 in bowl games.
Furthermore, the Big Ten is 0-3 in the last three Rose Bowls, being outscored 119-59.
The Buckeyes are winless in their last three BCS bowl games — falling by a combined count of 103-59.
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