Well it is finally here GAME WEEK. After what seems to be par for the norm for OSU fans an extremely long off-season we are at that point where we will see posts about actual football games. This post is to discuss the B1G Power Rankings and I will try to be as unbiased as possible :)…
1.) Ohio State- What can I say about OSU that hasn’t already been said 1000 times? Nothing is the answer. The only team on their schedule that could beat them is themselves. Sure there are a couple of tough games but on paper they are head and shoulders above everyone else.
2.) Nebraska- Nebraska is returning most of their offense from lasts years team. They have great talents at QB, WR, and RB. The OL is corn fed. The defense has to have gotten better then they were the last few years, right?
3.) Northwestern- Pat Fitzgerald is the second best coach in the B1G IMO. He has 2 really good QBs and knows how to use them. Venric Mark is the perfect Scat Back for his offense. They are better on defense then most will admit. Can they take the next step is the biggest question.
4.) Wisconsin- Wisconsin is Wisconsin. They will be starting a veteran QB although he won’t be great. The RBs are STACKED and run 3-4 deep most would start on any other team in the country let alone B1G. Jared Abbrederis is a blue collar WR who will make plays and be under covered. The Defense is an area of concern IMO>
5.) Michigan State- Mark Dantonio is a Tressel coaching descendant. He will play awesome defense and have a good running game. He may have a bit of a QB controversy right now but I think you will see a lot of both QBs early on.
6.) Michigan- Here is the thing for me… I know most will say I am just being an OSU homer and my bias has blinded my judgement. Maybe it has maybe it hasn’t. Truth is They have lost their best defensive player and offensive player from last years team. Jake Ryan is due back but how effective will he be? The WR corp lost its biggest member in Amara Darboh to a foot injury for the year. Hoke signed 11 really high ranked OLmen in the last 2 years and took until today to name all 5 starters and one of them is a walk-on. Devin Gardner has to stay healthy and play even better then he did last year. Stud freshman RB recruit Derrick Green showed up to school and was overweight and out of shape and he is now the 5TH STRING RB. Without Jake Ryan the LBers are less than impressive. The DBs are great on paper and will need to keep performing that way. The DL is good on the ends but the middle has been soft so that needs to change as well. Brady Hoke also needs to get his team to play better on the road.
7.) Indiana- Offensively this team will put up a ton of points on just about everyone. The problem will be and always has been the defense. If they want to move up this list they need to play better defense.
8.) Penn State- Last year PSU played inspired and determined. They lost a lot of senior leadership though and need a lot of young guys to step up and buy into Bill O’Brien’s program.
9.) Iowa- This is most likely Kirk Ferentz last year. The running game will be good and so will the defense. The QB is young and inexperienced.
10.) Purdue- I really hope Darrell Hazell can rebuild the Boilermakers but I think he is a few years away still. He does have some talent though to work with and could surprise some teams for sure.
11.) Minnesota- Jerry Kill needs a miracle and a ton of new players this team needs heck I don’t even know. They need Glen Mason back he seemed to know how to make the Gophers decent and a bowl eligible team.
12.) Illinois- Poor Tim Beckman he should have never taken the job with the Illini. He has 18 year starter Nathan Scheelhaase is this the year he isn’t horrible? They need to play better at every aspect of the game.
I am sure many will have opinions about this so feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section of this post and next week when I do this again I will take them into account or maybe I won’t you never really know with me.
I don’t think you’re too far off on TTUN. Brady Hoke must’ve not gotten the notice that in order to win in CFB you have to have speed on your team and that is something TTUN lacks. They’re going back to the three yards and a cloud of dust B1G days. I think Nebraska could be a national title contender with their offense, but my gosh is their defense awful. My sleeper team is going to be Penn State. I really really like O’Brien and how well he conveys his message to his players and how quickly they buy in to him. Also look out for IU to give teams fits with that spread attack.
I think we are on the same wavelength here… my surprise team could be Northwestern. Big big big sleeper might be Iowa. Ferentz is on the hot seat and his team will either win for him or fold to get rid of him.