Big Ten Media Poll: Minnesota 5th in West Division

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BleedGopher

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per Cleveland.com:

EAST

1. Ohio State, 195 points (23 first-place votes)

2. Michigan State, 180 points (10)

3. Michigan, 136 points

4. Penn State, 105.5 points

5. Maryland, 84 points

6. Indiana, 78.5 points

7. Rutgers, 33 points

WEST

1. Wisconsin, 183.5 points (15 first-place votes)

2. Iowa, 173 points (11)

3. Nebraska, 157.5 points (5)

4. Northwestern, 112 points (1)

5. Minnesota, 96.5 points

6. Illinois, 58 points

7. Purdue, 31.5 points

http://www.cleveland.com/osu/index.ssf/2014/07/ohio_state_picked_to_win_big_t.html

Go Gophers!!
 

Who's the idiot that gave Northwestern a first place vote?
 


matt said:
Who's the idiot that gave Northwestern a first place vote?
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My guess would be one of these two:

Voters (two who cover each school were asked to vote. Only one vote was received for Maryland)

Northwestern: Teddy Greenstein, Kevin Trahan
 

It was Ohio State writer Doug Lesmerises.
 


East Thoughts:
Michigan is too high, MSU is too low, Indiana could be higher but they need to prove it first.

West:
Top 3 could be any order, WI has the most ??'s
NW is too high and should come in after us.
 

We'll be better than Northwestern. I think Nebraska will surprise people and win the division. Wisky and Iowa are overrated. Our overall record might not be better, but this year's team is improved over last year imo.
 

I think the fun thing about the west division this year is that there will be quite a bit of parity in teams 1-5. It could be a wide open race for 1st.

I think the East has a clear 1 and 2 (Ohio St./Mich. St.) then Michigan and Penn St. are clearly ahead of the rest.
 

Explain how Penn State will be better this year (serious question, not trolling)
 



Pompous Elitist said:
Explain how Penn State will be better this year (serious question, not trolling)
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Better than last year or better than Maryland, Rutgers, and Indiana? I think they could be about the same as last year and still be ahead of those 3.
 

Pompous Elitist said:
Explain how Penn State will be better this year (serious question, not trolling)
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Depends on what you mean by better. If just by record they might be, their schedule is pretty favorable. vs Northwestern and @ Illinois are their crossovers and they get Ohio St. and Michigan St. at home.
 

Pompous Elitist said:
Explain how Penn State will be better this year (serious question, not trolling)
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Christian Hackenberg is a year older and is not only the best QB in the conference, but one of the best QBs in the country. A good QB can take you a long way even with nothing else (and he's certainly not all Penn St. has). Jay Cutler almost single-handedly made a terrible Vanderbilt squad into a near-miss bowl team against a vicious SEC slate - and Penn St. is waaaaaaay better than Vandy was then.
 

dpodoll68 said:
Christian Hackenberg is a year older and is not only the best QB in the conference, but one of the best QBs in the country. A good QB can take you a long way even with nothing else (and he's certainly not all Penn St. has). Jay Cutler almost single-handedly made a terrible Vanderbilt squad into a near-miss bowl team against a vicious SEC slate - and Penn St. is waaaaaaay better than Vandy was then.
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With all due respect to dpodoll (har har), I disagree. Penn State is going to bottom out this year and start improving next year. Indiana is continually getting better, and with a mediocre defense they'll surpass Penn State.
 



everybody knows my name said:
With all due respect to dpodoll (har har), I disagree. Penn State is going to bottom out this year and start improving next year. Indiana is continually getting better, and with a mediocre defense they'll surpass Penn State.
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I can't see Indiana being better than Penn State with Hackenburg at the helm.
 

I'm interested to see how Hackenburg does without Allen Robinson. They're pretty thin at WR with him gone if I'm not mistaking, although deep at TE. Their O-line could be a mess though, I think one of their starters is a converted DT from the spring. He'll have to really make a big jump if he's going to carry them to a good season.
 


Media never plays on Saturdays. Never has, never will. Its press credentials and their readers. There are homers who vote the team their readers support. We are represented by cynics and very ill equipped satirists. Our press credentialed people at this and the Big 10 Kickoff have no standing with their cohorts. No less about the team, and frankly don't care about the team they cover.
 

Sickens me to say it, but if Wisconsin fails to waltz through to the Big Ten title game this year, I'll be stunned. After they get their opener against LSU out of the way they have a schedule softer than church music. Their road Big Ten games are at NW, at Rutgers, at Purdue, and at Iowa. Home they get, NU, Maryland, Illinois, and us. No OSU or Michgans to be found on the schedule.
 


Media predictions on how B10 final standings

The Cleveland Plain Dealer polled Big Ten media again this year and released their predictions for the upcoming football season. Here were some of the results.

EAST

1. Ohio State, 195 points (23 first-place votes)
2. Michigan State, 180 points (10)
3. Michigan, 136 points
4. Penn State, 105.5 points
5. Maryland, 84 points
6. Indiana, 78.5 points
7. Rutgers, 33 points

WEST

1. Wisconsin, 183.5 points (15 first-place votes)
2. Iowa, 173 points (11)
3. Nebraska, 157.5 points (5)
4. Northwestern, 112 points (1)
5. Minnesota, 96.5 points
6. Illinois, 58 points
7. Purdue, 31.5 points

Not sure tOSU is better than Sparty or if Wisconsin can replace their front 7 on D but that's why they play the games.
 

jaymil said:
I'm interested to see how Hackenburg does without Allen Robinson. They're pretty thin at WR with him gone if I'm not mistaking, although deep at TE. Their O-line could be a mess though, I think one of their starters is a converted DT from the spring. He'll have to really make a big jump if he's going to carry them to a good season.
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Thin at WR & deep at TE? Sounds like a recipe for success to me!
 

Gopher Bandanna Guy said:
Sickens me to say it, but if Wisconsin fails to waltz through to the Big Ten title game this year, I'll be stunned. After they get their opener against LSU out of the way they have a schedule softer than church music. Their road Big Ten games are at NW, at Rutgers, at Purdue, and at Iowa. Home they get, NU, Maryland, Illinois, and us. No OSU or Michgans to be found on the schedule.
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Iowa has Maryland and Indiana for crossovers and plays Wisconsin at home. I pick Iowa in that game.
 

jaymil said:
I'm interested to see how Hackenburg does without Allen Robinson. They're pretty thin at WR with him gone if I'm not mistaking, although deep at TE. Their O-line could be a mess though, I think one of their starters is a converted DT from the spring. He'll have to really make a big jump if he's going to carry them to a good season.
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I agree- as good as Hackenburg may be, losing the guy who caught over 40% of his completions and having no other returning WR in the top 30 (in Big 10) in catches will certainly put the onus on him for any team success.
 

They lose a great DT, the top playmaker in the Big Ten, and are thin due to scholarship reductions.

An elite QB can make up for many deficiencies; time will tell if Hack thrives without the two departing WR starters.
 

Gopher Bandanna Guy said:
Sickens me to say it, but if Wisconsin fails to waltz through to the Big Ten title game this year, I'll be stunned. After they get their opener against LSU out of the way they have a schedule softer than church music. Their road Big Ten games are at NW, at Rutgers, at Purdue, and at Iowa. Home they get, NU, Maryland, Illinois, and us. No OSU or Michgans to be found on the schedule.
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Their eight conference opponents combined to go 22-42 in their conference games last year. The good thing is in 2016 their crossover games are Ohio St., Michigan, and Michigan St.

However, this couldn't have worked out any better for WI. They lost a ton of talent from last year, yet are still the favorites partly due to that insanely weak schedule. Not their fault of course, just couldn't have asked for a better situation if you're them.
 

GophersInIowa said:
Their eight conference opponents combined to go 22-42 in their conference games last year. The good thing is in 2016 their crossover games are Ohio St., Michigan, and Michigan St.

However, this couldn't have worked out any better for WI. They lost a ton of talent from last year, yet are still the favorites partly due to that insanely weak schedule. Not their fault of course, just couldn't have asked for a better situation if you're them.
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The good thing is, even though WI's schedule is pretty much a cakewalk after LSU, that also means that they can't have any blips this season if they want a shot at the National title game - including vs. LSU.
 

cncmin said:
The good thing is, even though WI's schedule is pretty much a cakewalk after LSU, that also means that they can't have any blips this season if they want a shot at the National title game - including vs. LSU.
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I don't think any UW fans have any delusions that this team is capable of being in the playoff picture. This is a team with some young talent on defense, a good offensive line and very good running backs. There are serious questions at QB and WR. If a QB steps up and they find someone (anyone) that can prove to be a threat outside, they should be able to challenge for a B1G title, but that's about as far as they can go in my mind.
 

jaymil said:
I'm interested to see how Hackenburg does without Allen Robinson. They're pretty thin at WR with him gone if I'm not mistaking, although deep at TE. Their O-line could be a mess though, I think one of their starters is a converted DT from the spring. He'll have to really make a big jump if he's going to carry them to a good season.
Click to expand...

Completely agree, even if Hackenburg is the best QB in the league, he might have a really tough time because they very well could have one of the worst OL's in the conference. They are expected to start 2 guys that were backup DT's last year. If they have just an injury or 2, they could be in the running for the worst power conference line in the country.
 

Media pollers obvious see the gophers record from last year as a fluke to pick Northwestern to finish ahead of us considering what each has returning.
 

march madness said:
Media pollers obvious see the gophers record from last year as a fluke to pick Northwestern to finish ahead of us considering what each has returning.
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Doesn't NW return their entire offense aside from Colter and most of their defense?
 

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