Big Win for the Big Ten

(courtesy of halfmanhalfdog.wordpress.com)

If you would have asked me a couple days ago how I thought the Big Ten would fair this bowl season, you probably would have gotten a grumpy look and barely discernable "crappy" mumbled from my mouth.  The Big Ten was thought by most to be down yet again this year and didn't exactly have great matchups in any of it's bowl games.  The pride and joy (well, at least what the rest of the country believes to be our best), Ohio State, got matched up against the high-octane offense of Oregon and many don't think the Buckeyes will be able to keep up.  Iowa, who most have discounted from the very beginning, will face off against a formidable (I use that word very loosely, especially after last night) offense in Georgia Tech, and the other majore power, who most would say is unproven (Penn State), will go up against a very good LSU team.  Down the line you have a mediocre (at best) Minnesota team taking on Iowa State (one of those "does somebody HAVE to win?" type games), Northwestern draws Auburn and Michigan State gets Texas Tech (if either school has enough coaches and players to participate).  The conference, as a whole, didn't look to have a lot of hope. 

Last night the Big Ten kicked off its bowl season with Wisconsin taking on The U.  Most folks around the country, especially those talking heads that have given the Big Ten (or as they like to say, the litte Ten) so much love this year, didn't give Wiscy a chance.  But, I had a change of heart in the middle of yesterday afternoon.  I told myself "if you're going to preach about Ga. Tech not facing defenses all year, shouldn't you keep that logic with Miami?"  So I did.  I changed my pick and moved up 4 spots in my ESPN College Bowl Mania group.  Thank you Wisconsin, and thank you ACC schools for not ever playing any defense.

(courtesy of tbo.com)

I know, I know, the game was only 20-14.  But for those of you who didn't catch the game, it was, as one of my college coaches used to say, a sh*t show, a complete debacle.  Miami started the game off with a razzle-dazzle reverse on the kickoff which brought back memories of the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary "The U."  But for those of you who caught that one as well, you may have noticed a similarity other than the trick plays and sheer speed.  Penalties.  The kickoff was called back on a block in the back.  Miami didn't seem to mind much as they were able to score on their first play from scrimmage.  But Jonah, I thought you said this was a good one for the Big Ten?  Well, The U managed to score from 15 yards out on its first play, but then failed to score until a little over a minute left in the game. And believe me, if Wisconsin had any sense of urgency, that TD wouldn't have made it close. 

Now, I don't want to get into a complete game recap because you can watch the whole thing on ESPN360.com or get all the stats on ESPN.com.  But, I do want to throw a couple numbers out there becuase they tell the story of the game.  430.  That's how many yards Wiscy tallied.  Miami? 249.  121.  That's how many rushing yards John Clay had against Miami.  Against Iowa?  75.  But Jonah, Miami is built on speed, nobody said they could beat teams that are supposed to be able to run the ball.  7.  That's how many yards the big hoss, Jonathan Dwyer, had against Miami.  7 yards on 5 carries. 

Now, I understand he was hurt, but let's face it, nobody got it going against the Canes.  I further understand that you can't play the game of they beat so and so, who beat so and so, who we beat, so we will beat you.  But let's face it, Miami showed the world last night that there are two very different styles of football from the Big Ten and the ACC.  They showed us that you can't teach speed 9and by that I mean, you can't make guys faster AND you can't teach guys that are recruited purely for speed how to play fundamental football in 2 years).  Wiscy taught us that a strong weight program and sound fundamentals can make up for a lack of team speed and that a dominant O-Line can go a long way in college football.  Do I think these results will be reflective of the rest of the Big Ten's bowl games?  No.  But, I do think it's reason to have some hope.  I think it should show the rest of the conference that just because the national talking heads don't respect our style, doesn't mean we need to abandon it when we play faster teams that play a different style.  I think it has set the stage for the next few days and has certainly given me some hope for my Hawkeyes. 

 

(courtesy of collegegameballs.com)

Now, go ahead all you Jacket fans, curse me and tell me how you will walk all over us.  I can take it, and so can the rest of Hawkeye Nation, we've been doing it all year (see every College Gameday episode September 19 - November 21).  In the meantime, be sure to check out the BCS game previews and let us know your thoughts there.  If you have a thought about any of the other bowl games, go ahead and drop us a line.