Gopher Football
Big Ten update
It was one of those weeks in the Big Ten where you learned a little something about nearly every team. Maybe most of which, Wisconsin is in serious trouble. Their quarterback situation is now up in the air, and their defense could use some help as well.
- Penn State: Yeah, the Lions are good. Penn State is the only remaining undefeated team in the country that has won all of their games by at least 14 points, so after the way they pasted Wisconsin, I’m a little surprised they didn’t get bumped up to #2 in the polls. The Lions are hitting on everything right now. We all knew their offense was good, but they’ve shown in the past two weeks that their defense can get the job done as well. And with Derrick Williams returning kicks, their special teams are as dangerous as anyone’s.
- Ohio State: The Buckeyes are starting to lose their grip on this spot, but it’s hard to move such an accomplished team down until they falter. Despite their perceived struggles recently, Ohio State has only lost ONE Big Ten game in the past three calendar years. The concern right now for OSU is offense. In their game against Purdue, they did not get an offensive TD, and they accumulated only 222 total yards. Despite all the hype, Terrelle Pryor’s best passing game was against Wisconsin when he was 13-19 for just 144 yards.
- Michigan State: The Spartans continued their hot streak with a 37-20 win at previous unbeaten Northwestern. This is the sixth straight win for MSU since their opening-game loss at California, 38-31. Javon Ringer is getting it done for the Spartans; he is to the running back position in the Big Ten as Eric Decker is to the wide receivers. Ringer averages 159 ypg rushing, 25 yards more than Shannon Greene. He averages 202 total ypg, 45 more than Kory Sheets.
- Minnesota: It’s a little weird listing the Gophers this high, but looking at the other teams I don’t know who you would put in their place. The defense continues to give up yardage, but they make the big plays when needed. This week it was two fumble recoveries deep in Illinois territory, an interception in the final minute of the game, a goal line stand against one of the best rushing teams in the nation, and timely sacks.
- Illinois: Despite just having loss to Minnesota, I can’t get myself to put the Illini any lower than fifth. If Illinois can eliminate the mistakes in their offense, they can be about as dangerous as anyone in the conference. The problem for Illinois is on defense “” they’re giving up more points than they should.
- Iowa: Very quietly Iowa is having an okay season. People will look at the record and see three losses, but a closer look reveals they’re really not too far away. They lost by one point at a pretty good Pitt team, they lost by three points to a very good Michigan State team, but their one hiccup was at home when they lost to Northwestern by five. But by the same token, their two best wins are against Iowa State and Indiana, so they do have much to prove yet. Nevertheless, their three losses have only been by a combined 9 points. Despite not having a very good passing game, Iowa has been able to ride Shannon Greene at running back. He is #2 to Javon Ringer in the Big Ten at 134 yards per game.
- Wisconsin: Just as it feels weird to pencil the Gophers in at #4, it’s odd to pencil Wisconsin in at #7. After an 0-3 start in the Big Ten, the Badgers have been a colossal disappointment so far. In the 48-7 loss to Penn State, senior QB Allan Evridge was just 2-10 passing. Wisconsin didn’t exactly show a lot of confidence in him either “” in the first quarter Evridge attempted just one pass. Evridge was eventually replaced by Dustin Sherer who got Badger fans excited by completing his first two passes of the night. Sherer ended up throwing 9-17, and now Wisconsin is stuck with the decision on who their starting QB should be.
- Northwestern: After starting out 5-0 and seeing their team get complimented on their much-improved defense, the Wildcats allowed 37 points to Michigan State. Even though they didn’t allow that many yards to the Spartans (297 to be exact), most of that was due to great field position all game for the Spartans. Northwestern is by no means out of it “” they have Purdue coming to town, and then travel to Indiana so the opportunity will be there for them to improve to 7-1.
- Purdue: It hasn’t exactly been a “œfinish strong” type of effort for the Boilermakers as the Joe Tiller era draws to a close. The downward spiral started in the second week after they blew a 14-point halftime lead vs. Oregon, and continued the next week when they needed overtime to beat Central Michigan. They then lost by 13 at Notre Dame, and then despite being known as a team with a great offense year in and year out, they’ve scored just 9 points the past two weeks against Penn State and Ohio State. The lone bright spot for Purdue’s offense has been the play of running back Kory Sheets, who is on pace for his first 1000 yard season. Defensively, Purdue has to be happy after holding Penn State to a season low 20 points and containing Terrelle Pryor and the Ohio State offense.
- Michigan: If it wouldn’t have been for the serious collapse Indiana had against Iowa, Michigan would’ve found itself at the bottom of the conference this week. Things could not possibly any worse in Ann Arbor. The Wolverines are seeing things happen that haven’t happened in 40 years ““ like their first ever loss to a MAC team, the number of home losses they’ve suffered, and a soon-to-be likely end to their 33-year streak of making a bowl game. Gopher fans can relate to the pains of transitioning to a new system, but at least Gopher fans have been used to losing. I can’t imagine being a Michigan fan right now. When you win every year your whole life, how do you react to something like this? The offensive woes likely won’t last too long for Michigan though, they have a commitment from one of the top dual-threat QB’s in the nation in San Diego’s Tate Forcier. Even though it’s not an ideal situation to start a true freshman at quarterback, the Wolverines may not have any choice next year.
- Indiana: After showing a glimmer of hope last year, Indiana has returned the bottom of the conference in a big way. A week after playing Minnesota tough, the Hoosiers were utterly horrible against Iowa this past Saturday, losing 45-9. Iowa had nearly a 2:1 time of possession advantage over Indiana. It’s looking like the Hoosier’s best chance of a win will come on 10/25 against Northwestern.
National update
Game of the week
Obviously, the big game of the weekend was #1 Oklahoma against #5 Texas. I think the Longhorns surprised a lot of people, never having risen past #5 in the polls before this game despite having won all four of their previous games by at least 24 points. Unfortunately for the Longhorns, this game was the first in a BRUTAL stretch of their schedule. This week, Texas hosts #11 Missouri. Then they host #8 Oklahoma State. Then they got to #7 Texas Tech. Then after a week off against Baylor, they play at #16 Kansas. I will be shocked if anyone from the Big 12 or SEC can make it through their schedules undefeated, which could make it relatively easy for Penn State to make the national championship game. If that does happen, get ready for the usual whiners to come out in full force.
Game of the week, part 2
How about them Cowboys?! Oklahoma State put it to Missouri, beating the Tigers 28-23. They key was getting 3 second half interceptions against Missouri QB Chase Daniel. Another big factor OK State’s ability to run the ball. Kendall Hunter had 154 yards on 24 carries, and is on pace to rush for nearly 1800 yards this season. Oklahoma State’s new-found top-10 ranking might not last too long however, like the Longhorns they have a BRUTAL schedule. Yet to come are dates at Texas, at Texas Tech and home against Oklahoma in the Bedlam Game.
Team of the week
See Oklahoma State above.
Upset of the week
Most probably wouldn’t call it an upset, but a #11 team did beat a #4 team when Florida beat LSU in Gainesville. The manner in which it happened was surprising though, with Florida pounding out a 51-21 victory. Looks like the Gators are back.
Kick “˜em while they’re down
Wake Forest became the latest team to top the suddenly offense-starved Clemson Tigers, topping them 12-7. This was not good news for Clemson’s coach Tommy Bowden; he was fired today. Wide receivers coach Dabo Swinney was named as his replacement for the remainder of the year.
Quote of the week
Normally players come to the defense of their coach when they are fired, but not at Clemson. “They just told us. It’s what he deserved,” said senior quarterback Cullen Harper, who was benched after the Tigers’ loss to Wake Forest loss and replaced by highly regarded sophomore Willy Korn. “Dabo Swinney is a fine man and will do an excellent job.”
Next weekend’s big games
With the Gophers on bye this week there will be a lot of chances for Gopher fans to take in other games. There are several great ones on tap this weekend, here are a few:
#9 BYU @ TCU (Thursday 7:00 pm, Versus) ““ We won’t have to wait very long to get a good game this week, with BYU taking their #9 ranking to TCU, who is currently ranked just outside the top 25. TCU’s only blemish this season was a 35-10 loss at Oklahoma. If BYU can get past this game, they’ll likely stay undefeated until their final game of the year, a November 22nd battle @ #14 Utah.
#11 Missouri @ Texas (7:00 pm, ABC) ““ The Longhorns won’t have very long to enjoy their new spot at #1. Missouri is coming to town, and after losing to Oklahoma State, their season is on the line. Expect another high scoring shootout.
#16 Kansas @ #4 Oklahoma ““ For the second straight week there is a great under card in the Big 12. Oklahoma will need to be shake off the Texas loss, or Kansas will make them pay.
#12 Ohio State @ #20 Michigan State (2:30 pm, ABC) ““ This game has upset written all over it. The Spartans have been looking strong, and Ohio State, well at least their offense, has been sputtering. A win for Michigan State puts them in line for a possible conference-tying championship game against Penn State on November 22.
Wisconsin @ Iowa (11:00 am, Big Ten Network) ““ There probably isn’t a lot of interest in this game outside of these two states and Minnesota, but this game will tell a lot about both team. Can Wisconsin really fall to 0-4 in the Big Ten? Can Iowa keep their strong play going and dominate the Badgers? Both teams have strong running game, and less than stellar QB’s, so expect rushing to be a big part of this game. Which means that rush defense will be key. Advantage: Iowa. However, the X factor is trying to predict how Wisconsin will react to being down in a hole.
GopherHole.com Top 25
| Texas | ||||
| Penn State | ||||
| Alabama | ||||
| Oklahoma | ||||
| Georgia | ||||
| USC | ||||
| Oklahoma State | ||||
| Florida | ||||
| Missouri | ||||
| Ohio State | ||||
| Texas Tech | ||||
| BYU | ||||
| LSU | ||||
| Kansas | ||||
| Boise State | ||||
| Utah | ||||
| California | ||||
| Vanderbilt | ||||
| TCU | ||||
| Virginia Tech | ||||
| North Carolina | ||||
| Michigan State | ||||
| South Florida | ||||
| South Carolina | ||||
| Ball State |
Dropped Out:
13. Auburn (L vs. Arkansas, 25-22)
25. Wisconsin (L vs. Penn State, 48-7)
These rankings are GopherHole.com’s vote in the CollegeRivals.org Top 25 poll. Its voters are staff members from various independent college football websites just like GopherHole.com. Check back each week throughout the season to see the newest poll. Click Here to view the latest CollegeRivals.org Top 25. (This poll will be updated every Tuesday afternoon through out the season.)
Click Here to view last weeks top 25.
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