Big Ten West after 6 Weeks

[Pompous Elitist]

Not bad for coaches facing a trial date and a team in seeming turmoil a year ago.

The Iowa Way lives on, one punt at a time.

 

[Some guy]

Not bad for coaches facing a trial date and a team in seeming turmoil a year ago.

The Iowa Way lives on, one punt at a time.

I still think they end with 2 losses between Purdue, wisconsin, Minnesota, and Nebraska

 

[RememberMurray]

Minnesota's Special Teams #7 while Purdue was Ranked #13. It was the difference-maker. Our ST gave them poor field positions.

It is eerily similar - Nebraska ST is ranked #12.

We may have to rely on three things against the Huskers:
1. Special Teams.
2. Defense.
3. 12th Man. We need sell-out crowds to drown out the Nebbie fans.

This is exciting Big Ten Football in Autumn!

Yeah, I'm already anticipating. Should be fun viewing!

I'm really interested to see how the Gophers approach things on offense. Who will carry the ball? How much will we see the Wildcat? Will Wright, Autman-Bell, Jackson and Brown-Stephens all be healthy, and, if so, will they make an impact?

 

[hungan1]

Yeah, I'm already anticipating. Should be fun viewing!

I'm really interested to see how the Gophers approach things on offense. Who will carry the ball? How much will we see the Wildcat? Will Wright, Autman-Bell, Jackson and Brown-Stephens all be healthy, and, if so, will they make an impact?

That is the elephant in the room with all the injuries. I hate to say it. They may need a slow grinding game to keep Martinez the Husker Offense off the field as much as possible and keep the Defense fresh.

Who knows? It can turn into a wild-west shootout. It will be interesting to see what game preps are on both sides.

 

[Dakota2]

PSU's #1 QB didn't play that great. Two very, very good evenly matched teams go down to the wire. Great game. I don't think this loss hurts PSU much in the rankings.

Clifford played very well, especialy scrambling for first downs.

 

[Dakota2]

Execution

They are not mutually exclusive. Good teams strive for both.

 

[GVLCGopherFan]

If the Gophers beat Nebraska, you will see a dramatic shift in how Nebraska is perceived on GopherHole. Right now, 'Holers have the Huskers as a small half step below Iowa. If the Gophers beat 'em, though, the same people will swear that Nebraska is terrible.

Remember how people were trembling in fear during the lead-up to the trip to Colorado? Now we're hearing that the Buffs are plain awful.

To be fair, it's not just "Holers" saying Colorado is bad.

 

[RememberMurray]

To be fair, it's not just "Holers" saying Colorado is bad.

Yeah, but my point was about the "GopherHole Whiplash" phenomenon. In the week before the Gophers play an opponent, GopherHole builds that opponent up to be a fearsome powerhouse. But if the Gophers go on to beat said opponent, then GopherHole insists that that team was horrible all along. Whiplash!

For an example, see the buildup to the Colorado game, and compare it to how Colorado is viewed now.

Right now, the Gophers are gearing up to play Nebraska, and, consequently, Nebraska is a veritable Goliath — according to GopherHole. But if Minnesota beats Nebraska, then the win will be discounted, because Nebraska will be said to be "mediocre".

 

[SelectionSunday]

Nebraska is playing really solid football but they just can't seem to get out of their own way. They should have beaten Michigan State, could have beaten Michigan, and played really well against Oklahoma.

When you look at how the teams in the West are playing right now, they look like the second best team behind Iowa. And if I had to pick one team in the West to potentially beat Iowa head to head I would go with Nebraska as the team with the best shot at getting it done with the way they are playing overall.

This is correct.

 

[RememberMurray]

They are not mutually exclusive. Good teams strive for both.

I didn't say they were mutually exclusive. I asked which was more important.

 

[Pete smith]

While I am not sure Iowa wins if Clifford doesn get hurt but Franklin has to be the second worst coach in the B1G. How you not give your #2 enough reps to at least resemble aB1G QB is beyond belief. He looked like a duck out of water. actually felt sorry for him with crowd and the #1 defense bearing down on him. Sad

 

[MNVCGUY]

Yeah, but my point was about the "GopherHole Whiplash" phenomenon. In the week before the Gophers play an opponent, GopherHole builds that opponent up to be a fearsome powerhouse. But if the Gophers go on to beat said opponent, then GopherHole insists that that team was horrible all along. Whiplash!

For an example, see the buildup to the Colorado game, and compare it to how Colorado is viewed now.

Right now, the Gophers are gearing up to play Nebraska, and, consequently, Nebraska is a veritable Goliath — according to GopherHole. But if Minnesota beats Nebraska, then the win will be discounted, because Nebraska will be said to be "mediocre".

I get what you are saying and it does happen but there is also always a constant reevaluation of teams that takes place over the course of the season as they play more games.

Colorado is a prime example of that. They currently sit at 1-4 with their only win being against Northern Colorado. They have also failed to score over 15 points in any of their 4 losses. So it is pretty safe to say that Colorado is not a good team this year. The shutout road win is still impressive but it did come at the expense of a team that looks like they will finish at or near the bottom of the PAC 12 this season.

Some will discount a win over Nebraska based on Nebraska's record. But anyone who has been paying attention knows that Nebraska has gone toe to toe with some really good teams and come up just short. They are playing well right now and have improved a ton since their opening game loss to Illinois. If they got a rematch with Illinois today it would be a Nebraska route.

So while some might try and discount a win over Nebraska this weekend, I won't be in that camp as I see Nebraska as one of the better teams in the West right now in spite of their record.

 

[builtbadgers]

never understood discounting wins.

 

[MNVCGUY]

never understood discounting wins.

Yeah, some wins are more impressive than others based on who you beat but all wins should be celebrated.

 

[Dakota2]

I didn't say they were mutually exclusive. I asked which was more important.

No, you didn't say that. But the question implies to me that a team with some unexpected wrinkles thrown in might not be able to execute them properly. With two weeks of prep I think a good game plan will include some new looks and, at times, quicker pace, and still all be well executed.

 

[SanDiegoGopherFan]

I’m curious when MN will play to their potential for an entire game. We quickly forget we played OSU very tough.

 

[Gophergrandpa]

Yeah, but my point was about the "GopherHole Whiplash" phenomenon. In the week before the Gophers play an opponent, GopherHole builds that opponent up to be a fearsome powerhouse. But if the Gophers go on to beat said opponent, then GopherHole insists that that team was horrible all along. Whiplash!

For an example, see the buildup to the Colorado game, and compare it to how Colorado is viewed now.

Right now, the Gophers are gearing up to play Nebraska, and, consequently, Nebraska is a veritable Goliath — according to GopherHole. But if Minnesota beats Nebraska, then the win will be discounted, because Nebraska will be said to be "mediocre".

Nobody is saying that Nebraska is a power house or a Goliath. Some folks, including myself, are simply saying that Nebraska, this year, has a functional defense and an offense that produces lots of yards. Lots. When you play a team with lots of offensive fire power, you must either neutralize it with your defense or outrun it with your own offense. I hope our defense neutralizes Nebraska and we hold them to 10 points. But if our defense allows Nebraska to score at its season average (30+), and we come with an offensive game plan that is predictable and 80% run oriented (even though Mo and Potts are out), we might be the team that losses over a self-inflicted wound. I hope we thrash Nebraska, and I believe we can if we use our full offensive arsenal. But I don’t want to assume that Nebraska is an easy, sure win—a midget or Lilliputian. Not with this OC and with Mo and Potts on the sideline.

 

[Boomtime]

I've been out of the country for the past couple football weekends, but did I miss something here? People are hyping Nebraska now???

What has Nebraska done other than lose to Illinois (WOW), beat up on an atrocious Northwestern squad and blow a game against an overhyped Michigan team that literally has yet to beat a quality team this year?

People are hyping Nebraska because that's our next opponent.

It's a way of making an excuse should we lose.

We won't. Nebraska actually invents new ways to lose every week. Martinez is a turnover machine.

 

[MplsGopher]

I cannot abide having Neb at #2.

This is a team that has only beaten Fordham, Buffalo, and Northwestern, all at home.

They're 3-4, and are in serious danger of not getting more than two additional wins. That assumes they beat Gophers and Purdue, which are by no means assured.


Talk about close losses all you want. Doesn't do it for me.

 

[MplsGopher]

I've been out of the country for the past couple football weekends, but did I miss something here? People are hyping Nebraska now???

What has Nebraska done other than lose to Illinois (WOW), beat up on an atrocious Northwestern squad and blow a game against an overhyped Michigan team that literally has yet to beat a quality team this year?

Also have an OT loss against also overhyped Mich St (#10??? silly).

THe 1 TD loss to OU in Norman, I guess is the most "impressive" (??) thing they've done this season.

 

[Boomtime]

This isn't directed at any prior comment from anyone, but rather a general observation regarding views of Iowa's offense and defense.

In general, a key injury to a skill position player on offense(ie:Clifford of PSU or Mo of the Gophs) has a greater affect on the offense than losing one guy off a defensive unit. Iowa is a team full of good defensive players that feed off each other. I don't think there is any one guy on Iowa's team that could get hurt and the team would notice much dropoff. OK, maybe the punter.

Point is... when you have two of the three phases of a football team that are great, having a shitty offense simply doesn't hurt them like it would other teams. I don't see a potential loss on their schedule until the CCG.

PS... Screw Nebraska.

 

[MNVCGUY]

I cannot abide having Neb at #2.

This is a team that has only beaten Fordham, Buffalo, and Northwestern, all at home.

They're 3-4, and are in serious danger of not getting more than two additional wins. That assumes they beat Gophers and Purdue, which are by no means assured.


Talk about close losses all you want. Doesn't do it for me.

I will be honest, I really struggled with the middle of the West. The top and bottom were easy. Nobody will have any issue with Iowa at #1 or Illinois and Northwestern at #6 and #7. But the other spots are much trickier.

Nebraska - 3-4: Impressive wins - None. Losses to ranked teams - 3 and all 3 games were close. Bad Losses - 1 to Illinois in game 1. They have no shot to win the West with 3 conf loses on the year but I gave them the 2 spot because they just look better than the other 3 in the middle right now. Not by much but a little.

Wisconsin - 2-3: Impressive wins - None. Losses to ranked teams - 3 but 2 of the 3 were not all that close and one of the three was to a very unimpressive Notre Dame team.

Minnesota - 3-2: Road win against another team in the middle Purdue. Bad Loss - Bowling Green. Loss to ranked teams - 1 Ohio State in a fairly competitive game. Still feels like the one team that has a ton of untapped upside. Question is if they can figure out how to tap into it before it is too late.

Purdue - 3-2: Solid win against 4-2 Oregon State but also barely got by Illinois at home and lost to the Gophers in West Lafayette. 1 loss to a ranked Notre Dame team who as mentioned above does not look like anything special at all.

So to me, the middle of the West is a mess. Really could see any of the 4 coming out in second place to Iowa, not sure any of them have enough to take Iowa down but also think that because of the way that Iowa plays and wins a number of teams may be able to make it interesting.

On a side note this may be the most parity we have seen in College Football for quite a while. With Alabama finally going down the field is wide open. And there are some pretenders like Michigan State hanging near the top who will drop like rocks as soon as they finally lose a game.

 

[MplsGopher]

I will be honest, I really struggled with the middle of the West. The top and bottom were easy. Nobody will have any issue with Iowa at #1 or Illinois and Northwestern at #6 and #7. But the other spots are much trickier.

Nebraska - 3-4: Impressive wins - None. Losses to ranked teams - 3 and all 3 games were close. Bad Losses - 1 to Illinois in game 1. They have no shot to win the West with 3 conf loses on the year but I gave them the 2 spot because they just look better than the other 3 in the middle right now. Not by much but a little.

Wisconsin - 2-3: Impressive wins - None. Losses to ranked teams - 3 but 2 of the 3 were not all that close and one of the three was to a very unimpressive Notre Dame team.

Minnesota - 3-2: Road win against another team in the middle Purdue. Bad Loss - Bowling Green. Loss to ranked teams - 1 Ohio State in a fairly competitive game. Still feels like the one team that has a ton of untapped upside. Question is if they can figure out how to tap into it before it is too late.

Purdue - 3-2: Solid win against 4-2 Oregon State but also barely got by Illinois at home and lost to the Gophers in West Lafayette. 1 loss to a ranked Notre Dame team who as mentioned above does not look like anything special at all.

So to me, the middle of the West is a mess. Really could see any of the 4 coming out in second place to Iowa, not sure any of them have enough to take Iowa down but also think that because of the way that Iowa plays and wins a number of teams may be able to make it interesting.

On a side note this may be the most parity we have seen in College Football for quite a while. With Alabama finally going down the field is wide open. And there are some pretenders like Michigan State hanging near the top who will drop like rocks as soon as they finally lose a game.

Solid post.

I think it's quite fair and easy to say that all four of these teams have a lot of work to do and are in "prove it" mode.


And yes, Mich St is as fake as it gets. They've played nobody. Nebraska is the most impressive team they've played, and needed OT to win.

 

[Gold Rush]

I get what you are saying and it does happen but there is also always a constant reevaluation of teams that takes place over the course of the season as they play more games.

Colorado is a prime example of that. They currently sit at 1-4 with their only win being against Northern Colorado. They have also failed to score over 15 points in any of their 4 losses. So it is pretty safe to say that Colorado is not a good team this year. The shutout road win is still impressive but it did come at the expense of a team that looks like they will finish at or near the bottom of the PAC 12 this season.

Some will discount a win over Nebraska based on Nebraska's record. But anyone who has been paying attention knows that Nebraska has gone toe to toe with some really good teams and come up just short. They are playing well right now and have improved a ton since their opening game loss to Illinois. If they got a rematch with Illinois today it would be a Nebraska route.

So while some might try and discount a win over Nebraska this weekend, I won't be in that camp as I see Nebraska as one of the better teams in the West right now in spite of their record.

I fully agree and this is yet another good post from you. This is a very key game for the Gophers this season and I think a win unlocks the chance to go to a decent bowl game this year and play in bigger, meaningful games later on. Nebraska got banged up pretty good in the Michigan game but they should come into this game playing with more confidence and they are in bad need of a win vs. the Gophers. I think that extra week off for us was huge as was playing the game at home. We have beaten Nebraska 3 of the last 4 years and each time the Gophers defense really hit them hard and we played very well. We will need our best effort of the season to win.

 

[bleedsmaroonandgold]

I feel like Nebraska can only be number 2 if we have decided that winning the games doesn't really matter. When a team is seven games in, I don't think you get to be number 2 if one of your biggest selling points is "looked competitive in losses." They are admittedly tough to rank, because they don't have any games against teams that are kind of in the middle (like ours against Purdue). This coming weekend is that kind of game, and I'd probably have them at 2 if they take their current resume and add a road win at Minnesota. For now, a 3-4 team with no good wins an a really bad loss doesn't do it for me.

 

[Stuff]

I still think they end with 2 losses between Purdue, wisconsin, Minnesota, and Nebraska

That seems highly unlikely at this point.

 

[upnorthkid]

While I am not sure Iowa wins if Clifford doesn get hurt but Franklin has to be the second worst coach in the B1G. How you not give your #2 enough reps to at least resemble aB1G QB is beyond belief. He looked like a duck out of water. actually felt sorry for him with crowd and the #1 defense bearing down on him. Sad

I mean, how exactly are you ever supposed to simulate that moment? Some guys react and ball out, others do not

 

[MNVCGUY]

I feel like Nebraska can only be number 2 if we have decided that winning the games doesn't really matter. When a team is seven games in, I don't think you get to be number 2 if one of your biggest selling points is "looked competitive in losses." They are admittedly tough to rank, because they don't have any games against teams that are kind of in the middle (like ours against Purdue). This coming weekend is that kind of game, and I'd probably have them at 2 if they take their current resume and add a road win at Minnesota. For now, a 3-4 team with no good wins an a really bad loss doesn't do it for me.

Honestly with the 4 teams in the middle of the West the positioning 2-5 probably really doesn't matter and is pretty much impossible to sort out right now. Our game against Nebraska will provide a lot of clarity as to how the teams stack up against each other.

 

[MaxyJR1]

We're at make it or break point of the season. Next two games are absolutely must wins at home to beat my expectations for the season. However outside of Iowa, Illinois, and Northwestern, the remaining games are all pretty much toss-ups. Hope our bye week was healing and the staff and players are ready for the stretch run.

 

[Some guy]

That seems highly unlikely at this point.

Meh, they’re a good not great team that plays a bunch of competent teams still. A&M just beat Bama. I’m not going to call Iowa @ Madison automatic