Foaming At The Mouth
At the end of the first quarter...
Three weeks into the Big Ten season and what more have we learned?
Indiana (defeated Akron 41-24) Teams that face Indiana have every good reason to fear the Kellen Lewis-to-James-Hardy passing tandem. Lewis can run the ball pretty well, too. Akron made it clear they would concede the running game, but nobody expected Lewis to pick up 199 yds. on the ground. Indiana's stock: Steady to a shade better
Illinois (defeated Syracuse 41-20) The Illini now have two notable runners out of the backfield. Troy Pollard ran for almost 100 yards. Granted, it was against hapless Syracuse, but still.... Illinois' stock: Rising
Wisconsin (defeated The Citadel 41-35)Wisconsin was supposed to rely on a rock-ribbed defense, but The Citadel ate 'em up through the air and had Wisconsin tied dead even at the half. They'll have to do better in the conference matchups than that.Wisconsin's stock: Steady to a shade weaker
Iowa (lost to Iowa State 15-13)You can lose tough games, but in-state rivalry games are much tougher. Now Iowa will have some measure of doubt leftover from last season to carry around after losing to a deep underdog of a Cyclone team. Iowa's stock: Falling
Michigan (defeated Notre Dame 38-0) It's clearly best if you don't get Mike Hart all riled up. Not that beating Notre Dame seems to mean much this year (they appear ready to plunge back to Bob Davie-era depths) but it's a reminder that Hart was a long list Heisman candidate at the beginning of the year for a reason. Michigan's stock: Steady to a shade better
Ohio State (defeated Washington 33-10)Defense looked to be a Buckeye question mark going into the season, but so far they've given the grind-it-out oriented offense plenty of room to get up to speed. Ohio State's stock: Rising
Northwestern (lost to Duke 20-14) Pat Fitzgerald is clearly not as far along the head coach learning curve as previously thought. You just don't take points off the board under any circumstances, and not when your offense is struggling without its top rusher. Northwestern's stock: Falling
Elsewhere, Purdue and Penn State are turning soft opponents into soft victories, Michigan State continues to show progress at the beginning of the Dantonio era, and Minnesota continues to struggle by joining the ranks of Teams That Have Lost To 1-AA Programs. This week, conference play begins!
At the end of the first quarter...
Three weeks into the Big Ten season and what more have we learned?
Indiana (defeated Akron 41-24) Teams that face Indiana have every good reason to fear the Kellen Lewis-to-James-Hardy passing tandem. Lewis can run the ball pretty well, too. Akron made it clear they would concede the running game, but nobody expected Lewis to pick up 199 yds. on the ground. Indiana's stock: Steady to a shade better
Illinois (defeated Syracuse 41-20) The Illini now have two notable runners out of the backfield. Troy Pollard ran for almost 100 yards. Granted, it was against hapless Syracuse, but still.... Illinois' stock: Rising
Wisconsin (defeated The Citadel 41-35)Wisconsin was supposed to rely on a rock-ribbed defense, but The Citadel ate 'em up through the air and had Wisconsin tied dead even at the half. They'll have to do better in the conference matchups than that.Wisconsin's stock: Steady to a shade weaker
Iowa (lost to Iowa State 15-13)You can lose tough games, but in-state rivalry games are much tougher. Now Iowa will have some measure of doubt leftover from last season to carry around after losing to a deep underdog of a Cyclone team. Iowa's stock: Falling
Michigan (defeated Notre Dame 38-0) It's clearly best if you don't get Mike Hart all riled up. Not that beating Notre Dame seems to mean much this year (they appear ready to plunge back to Bob Davie-era depths) but it's a reminder that Hart was a long list Heisman candidate at the beginning of the year for a reason. Michigan's stock: Steady to a shade better
Ohio State (defeated Washington 33-10)Defense looked to be a Buckeye question mark going into the season, but so far they've given the grind-it-out oriented offense plenty of room to get up to speed. Ohio State's stock: Rising
Northwestern (lost to Duke 20-14) Pat Fitzgerald is clearly not as far along the head coach learning curve as previously thought. You just don't take points off the board under any circumstances, and not when your offense is struggling without its top rusher. Northwestern's stock: Falling
Elsewhere, Purdue and Penn State are turning soft opponents into soft victories, Michigan State continues to show progress at the beginning of the Dantonio era, and Minnesota continues to struggle by joining the ranks of Teams That Have Lost To 1-AA Programs. This week, conference play begins!
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see ya at the partay