BleedGopher
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Per Steve:
The Big Ten’s westward expansion could challenge the league’s reputation for smashmouth football.
No Power Five conference has tended to rely more on defense and the running game than the Big Ten. The arrival of Southern California, UCLA, Oregon and Washington next year just might change that.
“It’ll be a fun mix of leagues,” said new Purdue offensive coordinator Graham Harrell, who held the same position at USC from 2019-21.
Perhaps the mix will help balance a conference whose strength has come on one side of the ball lately.
The list of the 14 Bowl Subdivision programs to allow the fewest yards per game last season included six Big Ten schools: Iowa (2nd), Illinois (3rd), Michigan (6th), Minnesota (9th), Wisconsin (11th) and Ohio State (14th). That marked the 10th straight season in which at least two Big Ten teams ranked in the top 10 in total defense.
Each of the last five years, Ohio State has been the only Big Ten program to finish among the nation’s top 20 teams in total offense. The last time the Big Ten had two teams rank in the top 15 in total offense was 2014.
“I do think there’s a nature of playing really sound in the Big Ten,” said new Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell, who previously spent about two decades in the conference as a defensive tackle, assistant coach and interim head coach at Ohio State. “There’s a nature of playing really physical in the Big Ten, not that they don’t do it in other conferences. If that means maybe there’s better defenses or less offensive firepower in the Big Ten, so be it.”
That offensive firepower is coming soon.
Washington ranked second, USC third, UCLA fourth and Oregon sixth nationally in total offense just last season. All four teams averaged at least 500 yards per game, something no Big Ten program other than Ohio State has done since Indiana in 2015.
Granted, most of the schools leaving the Pac-12 will have different quarterbacks by the time they enter the Big Ten. Yet these schools still should provide a change of pace from typical Big Ten football because their styles are more in line with nationwide trends prioritizing offense.
“I think defensively in general we haven’t been as good throughout the country of keeping up with the offenses,” Fickell said. “I think defensive guys have been set in their ways a little bit. But I think what you’re starting to see is an evolution and change on both sides of the ball. Will it affect the Big Ten? Yes. I don’t know exactly how.”
That uncertainty carries over to the players with experience in both the Pac-12 and Big Ten.
Nebraska center Ben Scott transferred from Arizona State and Wisconsin wide receiver CJ Williams began his college career at USC. Both predict slight changes in the Big Ten’s style of play with the arrival of the Pac-12 schools, but they don’t expect a major transformation.
apnews.com
Go Gophers!!
The Big Ten’s westward expansion could challenge the league’s reputation for smashmouth football.
No Power Five conference has tended to rely more on defense and the running game than the Big Ten. The arrival of Southern California, UCLA, Oregon and Washington next year just might change that.
“It’ll be a fun mix of leagues,” said new Purdue offensive coordinator Graham Harrell, who held the same position at USC from 2019-21.
Perhaps the mix will help balance a conference whose strength has come on one side of the ball lately.
The list of the 14 Bowl Subdivision programs to allow the fewest yards per game last season included six Big Ten schools: Iowa (2nd), Illinois (3rd), Michigan (6th), Minnesota (9th), Wisconsin (11th) and Ohio State (14th). That marked the 10th straight season in which at least two Big Ten teams ranked in the top 10 in total defense.
Each of the last five years, Ohio State has been the only Big Ten program to finish among the nation’s top 20 teams in total offense. The last time the Big Ten had two teams rank in the top 15 in total offense was 2014.
“I do think there’s a nature of playing really sound in the Big Ten,” said new Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell, who previously spent about two decades in the conference as a defensive tackle, assistant coach and interim head coach at Ohio State. “There’s a nature of playing really physical in the Big Ten, not that they don’t do it in other conferences. If that means maybe there’s better defenses or less offensive firepower in the Big Ten, so be it.”
That offensive firepower is coming soon.
Washington ranked second, USC third, UCLA fourth and Oregon sixth nationally in total offense just last season. All four teams averaged at least 500 yards per game, something no Big Ten program other than Ohio State has done since Indiana in 2015.
Granted, most of the schools leaving the Pac-12 will have different quarterbacks by the time they enter the Big Ten. Yet these schools still should provide a change of pace from typical Big Ten football because their styles are more in line with nationwide trends prioritizing offense.
“I think defensively in general we haven’t been as good throughout the country of keeping up with the offenses,” Fickell said. “I think defensive guys have been set in their ways a little bit. But I think what you’re starting to see is an evolution and change on both sides of the ball. Will it affect the Big Ten? Yes. I don’t know exactly how.”
That uncertainty carries over to the players with experience in both the Pac-12 and Big Ten.
Nebraska center Ben Scott transferred from Arizona State and Wisconsin wide receiver CJ Williams began his college career at USC. Both predict slight changes in the Big Ten’s style of play with the arrival of the Pac-12 schools, but they don’t expect a major transformation.
Arrivals of West Coast schools could cause Big Ten to depart from its traditional smashmouth style
The Big Ten’s westward expansion could challenge the league’s reputation for smashmouth football. No Power Five conference relies more on defense and the running game than the Big Ten.
apnews.com
Go Gophers!!
