Week 14 Pac 10 Preview

For years it's seemed unfathomable, but the Pac 10 might have a champion whose name isn't USC in 2008. The irony is that this comes in one of the conference's weakest seasons in recent memory - not Aaron Rodgers' Cal, not Dennis Dixon's Oregon, but Lyle Moveao's Oregon State Beavers would be the team to finally dethrone the King.

USC sits at 9-1 and have, for the most part, laid waste to every opponent they've faced with a stifling defense. One bad half cost them a game to Oregon State, who sits at 8-3 with their final game vs Oregon coming up this week. But alas, two of these losses are out of conference (Penn State, Utah - not a bad bunch) making the Beavers 7-1 in conference with the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Trojans. Oregon State hosts Oregon this Saturday, and a win sends the Beavers to the Rose Bowl. Due to the Ducks being 6-2 in conference (with loss to USC), and everyone else having 3 or more conference losses, if Oregon wins then that probably ensures that USC will get the conference crown even if they lose to UCLA, as long as they don't also lose to Notre Dame.

UCLA @ Arizona State
Both sitting at 4-6, these are the two worst teams in the conference from outside the state of Washington. Both teams have swept the Washington schools and beaten Stanford, but bonus that UCLA's win comes over Tennessee. Oh wait, Tennessee isn't going to be bowl eligible, and just lost to Wyoming. Eh. So yeah, don't watch this. Honestly.

Oregon @ Oregon State
As mentioned, this is the de-facto Pac 10 Championship Game. Yeah, we didn't see that coming 3 months ago either. Not only would a win send Oregon State to the Rose Bowl to rematch Penn State, but it would likely keep _Buckeye._ out of the BCS. Always a plus. So with no hostility intended towards USC, go Beavs! Unfortunately, Jacquizz Rodgers may be out for this game, which obviously would have a huge impact on how it plays out...

Notre Dame @ USC
Notre Dame just lost to Syracuse. This is going to be every bit as awesome as it looks.

Washington State @ Hawaii
WSU looks to follow up an "epic fail" game with a simple "fail."

Pac 10 October Rankings

In a flagrant display of EAST COAST BIAS (I live in Colorado, which is basically in New England), I've been seriously slacking with my Pac 10 updates. To be honest, the only reason I've kept doing them for the Big 12 is the cross-posting with Fantasy College Blitz -- I don't really have time to look at 22 teams when only 6 or 7 of them are interesting, but that's okay.

In a complete and utter shock, USC fields the top two teams in the Pac 10 when you count their second-stringers. Also in a complete and utter shock (note the lack of sarcasm this time around), everyone else blows. Seriously, blows. I don't know what's going on here but nobody else is giving two straight weeks of solid performance.

Marquee wins include USC mercilessly wtfpwning Ohio State and Virginia - yes, Virginia somehow turned it around, and at the very least no longer look like a bottom ten team (most of the ACC is worse than them, for example). Also Cal over Michigan State is looking good.

Marquee losses include UCLA getting 59-0'd by BYU, Cal losing to Maryland, Arizona losing to New Mexico, Arizona State losing to UNLV, Oregon losing to Boise State... and pretty much every game either Washington school has played, except for the fluke victory against Portland Community College.

In fact, the Pac 10 is the only Big 6 conference that currently has a combined losing nonconference record. Now, I don't know if anyone actually thinks they're worse than the ACC (Midnight Madness! Coming soon!)... but they're a far cry from the powerhouse of 2007.

Without further adieu, the rankings:

1. USC (6-1, 4-1)
Most people were picking Arizona or Stanford, and out of nowhere THE USC TROJANS are #1 in the Pac 10! This will be just their seventh BCS-bound season under Pete Carroll, so that's got to be really exciting for fans out in California, as well as destroying the rest of the nation's image of the conference as a one-team show!

2. USC's Scout Team
Led by elite QB Mitch Mustain, this group features USC's 2010 defense, which will also allow about 10 ppg, and USC's 8th-string running back, who would be a starter for at least 95 other programs. Rumor has it that Mustain will transfer to Iowa next season, just as Bobby Petrino takes Kirk Ferentz' job, to finally unite the two mercenaries.

3. Oregon (6-2, 4-1)
You can make hysterical renditions of other teams' fight songs by quacking. (better if you also hold your hands in front of your face like a mini-Gator chomp) We've tried it out with the song for USC, Texas, Texas A&M, Tennessee, Michigan, Notre Dame... oh god, nonstop lolz. LOLZ, folks! Buckeye, folks! Looooonghorns, folks - that's Bevo's happy face. I can tell because I'm fucking stoned, folks. This team has only lost to USC and Boise State, so that makes them better than everyone else.

4. Arizona (5-3, 3-2)
Bob Stoops' less-evil brother knew that if he waited around long enough for the conference to have a really crappy season, his Wildcats could finish #3! High enough to maybe get into the Holiday Bowl and upset Oklahoma (oh god that would rule... I just thought of this shit now, and I gotta say... I really hope it happens). You hear that, Holiday Bowl selection committee? BATTLE OF THE STOOPS!

5. California (5-2, 3-1)
After flagrantly choking games against Maryland (MARYLAND!) and Arizona (28 points allowed in 10 minutes?), it's official that nobody is allowed to "believe in" Cal ever again. Lest they be reminded of the 2004 season when they whined a bunch then lost to Texas Tech. The Golden Hippies face Oregon and USC in their next two games.

6. Oregon State (4-3, 3-1)
I went back and forth between them and Stanford, before saying "fuck it, they beat USC" which earns them a spot in the top half of the conference. Also, they suck... which is fortunate, because sometimes if you're bad enough a good team will overlook you.

7. Stanford (4-4, 3-2)
How do you beat Arizona and lose to UCLA in consecutive weeks? Trees are supposed to be consistent, hardly changing from year to year let alone week to week. And when will you pluralize your name dammit! I can tolerate uppityness only when you're posting respectable results.

8. UCLA (3-5, 2-3)
When they beat Tennessee, I bought into this team - honestly, I did. Yes I saw how horrible their offense looked, but they pulled it out against a good SEC team even after their QB threw 25 first half interceptions! What other explanation is there? Oh, what, Tennessee blows this year? Oh so that's why! Oh and that explains how they can win that game while losing to BYU and Fresno. Ahhhhh, I get it!

Also blah blah blah His Coachness blah blah blah.

9. Arizona State (2-5, 1-3)
Last win: Sept 6, 2008.

10. Pac 10 Coaching Staff All-Stars
Not 13 years ago, Jim Harbaugh was quarterbacking the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC Championship game, nearly pulling off the comeback victory over Pittsburgh despite having a dislocated shoulder on his throwing arm. Isn't Ken Norton a linebackers coach at USC? These guys have still got it! Actually, I'm not sure they shouldn't be higher... ASU doesn't have players like that.

11. Washington (0-7, 0-4)
Last win: Nov 17, 2007.
If you're wondering, they don't play Wazzou till Nov 22, so yes going a year between wins is possible.

12. Washington State (1-7, 0-5)
Okay, I ranked them below a team who might not win a single game over a 370 day span. That really should say enough. Also they set some kind of record for allowing 60+ points the most times during a season, and they still have five games to go! That's kinda like the opposite of Michael Crabtree setting the freshman WR TD record halfway through 2007!

Pac 10: Week 5 preview

USC @ Oregon State
Oregon State has had serious difficulty on defense stopping the run, and that doesn't bode well for a team who averaged better than 5 yards per carry against Ohio State. (Buckeye... yes, we're still doing that.) Expect McKnight & Co to have big days and USC to rack up yet another decisive victory.

Fresno State @ UCLA
Fresno State got beaten at hom by Wisconsin, then had a crazy 2OT game against a Toledo team most expected they'd handle easily. (Then again, Steele called the upset, so frankly I'm impressed that the Bulldogs even won.) UCLA has been downright awful in 11 of 12 quarters this year. This may be a Bulldogs statement game, although by now they have little chance of making the BCS.

Colorado State @ Cal
After being run out of Invesco by their rival Colorado, CSU has rebounded for a pair of close wins over Sacramento State and Houston. Meanwhile, Cal is looking to get back on the track they were on after two games, when they outscored Michigan State and Washington State 104-34. The tale of the tape shows that CSU is getting outgained both on the ground and in the air; meanwhile Cal has a +117 rushing ypg edge over their opponents - which, by the way, includes Javon Ringer. Cal managed to lose to Maryland despite a +164 yardage and +1 turnover advantage. Both teams missed one FG and Cal was +100 in return yardage. Penalties swung 50 yards in Maryland's favor, but that doesn't seem like it'd offset everything else... frankly, I'm still puzzled by this loss. But there should be no puzzlement here, Cal wins easily.

Oregon @ Washington State
Both teams have suffered major injuries at the QB position, and with new signal-callers running both offenses, this one could get ugly. Oregon has talent at RB and WR though, and one of the better-performing offensive lines in the conference. Washington State hasn't really performed well at any position. Expect the Ducks to walk... er, waddle... here.

Stanford @ Washington
Washington is the last remaining team in the Pac 10 without a victory, and I expect them to get that W at home against the Trees! Stanford does not have the firepower to outscore Jake Locker and they do not have a defense that can deal with this kind of threat at QB.

Pac 10: Impressions

The Pac 10 has long been the "Box of Chocolates" conference in that you don't know what the fuck you're going to get. (I like my chocolate blue.) The last seven seasons of USC aside, teams are great one season and awful the next, making it incredibly exciting for the fans and competitive for all teams. In 2002 it was Washington State, the last team to earn the conference's automatic bid before USC's stranglehold began... they lost to a pretty solid Oklahoma squad everyone seems to forget. In 2004 it was Cal, controversially passed over for Texas before getting run out of the Holiday Bowl by Texas Tech. Next season Oregon, passed over thanks to the Notre Dame Clause... hm, they lost to Oklahoma. 2006, Cal's back - they get blown out by Tennessee, rebound to finish second in the conference despite a bizarre loss to Arizona, and run A&M out of the Holiday Bowl. Last season Oregon's wheels seemed to fall off the cart, just after beating USC and having an outright conference title in their own control, Dennis Dixon gets hurt and the Ducks lose three straight... then rebound to destroy a pretty good South Florida team in the Sun Bowl. Last season the conference at times looked as tough as the SEC; this season, they're secretly thankful that the ACC's as horrible as it is. Good times out west.

Here are my impressions, in roughly ranked order:

1. USC

Okay, so we know Ohio State was overrated. That 35-3 massacre is still the statement game of the season, rivaled only by LSU winning a road game at Auburn. Does anyone out there think Jarrett Lee could lead those Tigers to a victory over this Trojan team? Well, certainly not if they played next week. This is the clear #1 in the country, both on what they've done and how they've looked doing it.

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2. Oregon

Giving Boise State their first road win against a BCS conference team dampens some of the mystique of Autzen. The Ducks are still the most talented and most physical Pac 10 team among the nine competing for that coveted at-large slot after USC gets done beating everyone senseless. They're almost +200 ypg on the ground, so really who cares what the QB situation is? This team actually has an offensive line and a runningback! Next two games are auto-win (Wash State) followed by auto-loss (USC), so Quackers just needs to have things together by Oct 11 (UCLA, lol)... so then make that, Oct 25 against Arizona State.

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3. Arizona

You know what, they've won three games. Nobody else besides Oregon can say that, and bonus that they destroyed UCLA. I don't know how they lost to New Mexico, but beating Toledo now looks a little more impressive after they took Fresno to 2OT before going for the 2 and the win... coming up short. Willie Tuitama continues to show promise. U of A has an extra week to prepare for Jake Locker and get off to a great start in conference play.

4. Cal

I don't like a team that loses to Maryland by more than Delaware did. That said, by talent Cal is the #3 or maybe even #2 team in the conference. Too bad the mantra in Berkely is "60% of the time, we show up every time." Damn hippies. Colorado State is a must-win game for respect reasons, and the upcoming games against the Arizona schools will be huge in determining the team's place in the conference as I currently have them sandwiched between the two.

5. Arizona State

Good QB, good receivers. By far the worst offensive line in the conference, making any talent or lack thereof at RB irrelevent. No defense. Sound familiar? After losing to New Mexico then getting soundly beaten by Georgia, ASU has two weeks to prepare for a big trip to Cal.

6. Oregon State

At this point, it's safe to say that the Beavers' loss to the team below them was a fluke. Not just the retarded goalline stretch... fumble, but the fact that they lost a game where they were +189 yards offense... or more tellingly, where Moevao passed for over 100 yards more than Stanford's offense gained in total. Penn State was an unwinnable game talent-wise and... oh what's this? Next game USC! Well there's always October... the game at Utah should be very telling.

7. Stanford

The record says 2-2, the tale of the tape is -117 ypg differential, including -140 through the air. This does not bode well in the Pac 10. The Cardinal's victories include a win over Oregon State thanks to a goalline fumble and a close game against San Jose State, who admittedly also gave Notre Dame a close game too, so hey, they must be pretty good.

8. UCLA

Say you get beaten 59-0 by team of Mormons. Following that up with a statement "oh, we have a game today?" performance against a struggling conference foe seems like a great idea, right? If you live in His Coachness' world, apparently so. This team is easily 0-3 if Tennessee just runs the ball, but noooooo, they have to confuse the football world with this new "Clawfense"... meanwhile, UCLA hosts a perplexing Fresno State team in a game both teams really need to win.

9. Washington

I'm only ranking them here because they're the only team in the conference that hasn't won a game yet. But look at who they've played! Oregon, BYU, and Oklahoma. That's three teams a combined 10-1, all of whom have been ranked at some point and truthfully Oregon may still be a top 25 team. They played BYU close and Oklahoma is just too good for all but about a dozen teams to make it interesting. I expect Washington to finish around the middle of the pack, after what we've seen from the likes of UCLA and Stanford. Speaking of whom, Washington has the opportunity to beat Stanford and jump up some this weekend.

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10. Washington State

Just awful. With Baylor, Duke, and Vanderbilt looking surprisingly competent, is this the worst BCS team? Iowa State may have something to say about that! Thank god they won't settle that one on the field...

The lines represent groups of similar teams. There's USC, sitting atop not only the conference but probably the entire nation right now. With the conference down from a year ago, can we just pencil them into the BCS Championship? Then there's Oregon - surprisingly, despite losing so much offensive talent, the class of the non-USC Pac 10. Bonus for a road win at Purdue. Then... well, then there's Washington State. Complete train wreck. As for everybody else, who knows? I don't think they're all equally good (sure, Arizona and Cal are better than UCLA and Washington), but wins here will likely come by who gives the better effort.

Pac 10 Week 2 Games

The Pac 10 had a strong week 1 outing, capped by USC's thorough dismantling on Virginia and UCLA's upset/comeback victory over Tennessee in a flagrantly bad game... but sometimes games go like that and you'd still like the W.

USC and UCLA have the week off while we've got two conference games and two games against ranked nonconference foes on the plate. Exciting week for those of you on the east coast who can stay up till 3pm to see it!

BYU @ Washington
Fortunately for the Huskies, I don't see BYU's defense as being too strong, and Jake Locker could be trouble for such a unit. Max Hall and his receivers will probably light up the UW secondary, so expect a shootout here.

Oregon State @ Penn State
Happy Valley is not a fun place to travel for a team who started out 0-1 and had blatantly obvious issues with stopping the run. Luckily, PSU will be without two starting defensive linemen, although I'm still not sure how the Beavers will handle this front seven. For that matter, I'm still not sure how good Daryll Clark actually is, so Penn State might not be scoring too much themselves. Still, they have a dedication to the running game and surprising skill at receiver. Bottom line, I don't like the prospects of winning this one of the road for OSU.

A victory in either of the above games would be yet another big early accomplishment for the Pac 9. (Pac 10 - USC; ie, the teams that sometimes struggle to gain national respect)

Utah State @ Oregon
Oregon just brutalized Washington in their opener, racking up tons of rushing yards by Jeremiah Johnson and Chris Harper while holding opposing QB Jake Locker to a sub-par outing. Utah State is just terrible. Blowout!

California @ Washington State
I mentioned earlier that this game would be interesting if both teams were 1-0. Well, they're not. Cal is, but the Cougars didn't even come close. The WSU offense looked awful against Oklahoma State, while Cal moved the ball up and down the field with ease against Michigan State. With Kevin Riley now taking all snaps for Cal, this one won't even be close.

Toledo @ Arizona
Arizona faces much stiffer competition this week than they did in week 1 when they beat Idaho 70-0. I'm thinking, 41-6?

Stanford @ Arizona State
Stanford dominated the ground against Oregon State, while Arizona State couldn't get a ground game going against Northern Arizona. Stanford was also horribly outpassed by OSU, while ASU may have the 2nd-best QB in the conference. Bonus that we've got two pretty good coaches going at it (yes, I think Harbaugh's 4-8 was a good record last season considering the injuries and what he was working with and against) here, this could actually be a good games despite Arizona State being the heavy favorite.

Week 1 Pac 10 recap

Arizona - So it was Idaho. Willie Tuitama looked great as did Nic Grigsby. The defense gave up just 112 yards and it was a 70-0 blowout. If nothing else, that says good execution.

Arizona State - This was not a very impressive outing as the Sun Devils' running game was held in check by a weak FCS school.

Cal - A win is a win, but they allowed a weak/overrated Michigan State team to hang around too long. On the bright side, Nate Longshore threw two interceptions in just five passing attempts, which means Kevin Riley will be the sure starter now and taking 100% of the meaningful snaps. Indeed, without Longshore mucking up the offense and giving MSU free points, this game would not have been so close. Jahvid Best had a strong all-around game and it looks like the offense will be balanced.

Stanford - Stanford showed dedication to the ground game and controlled key parts of the second and third quarters against Oregon State. However, they got shredded through the air as well as not being able to move the ball with their own passing game, and that doesn't bode well as we get deeper into the Pac 10 season.

Oregon - Other than USC, Oregon is the Pac 10 team who impressed me the most in week 1. Washington just got run out of Autzen in a very thorough effort that included a strong rushing performance by Jeremiah Johnson. Jeremiah Masoli came in unexpectedly at QB because of Roper's concussion, and I think if he is asked to play again he will give a stronger performance with better preparation. Definsively this looked like the Ducks of 2007, although obviously the offense will fall a little short of last season's Dixon-led juggernaught.

Oregon State - You have to feel for Darrell Catchings whose goalline stretch and subsequent fumble cost the Beavers an opportunity to tie the game. Of course, it still would have come down to needing a two-point conversion, so the tie was far from a certainty. Lyle Moevao was inconsistent and everything else was crap - how do you let Stanford run for 210 yards on you? Oregon State gets a shot at redemption next week when they face Penn State.

UCLA - You have to credit Kevin Craft for playing a strong second half after getting intercepted four times in the first half. That's all the credit we're giving here, though, as Tennessee would have won this game if a) they'd run the ball a little more often with two backs averaging over 6 ypc between them or b) they hadn't missed 3 FGs and gotten a punt blocked by going to a screwy formation. Mental toughness and determination are awesome, but we'll want to see the real Kevin Craft please step up.

USC - In summary, they made Virginia look like Youngstown State. Not that the Cavs are that much better than the Penguins, but... um, fuck it, yeah I can't give credit for beating UVA when I rant about how lucky they were last season, how much the ACC sucks, etc. However, I can give credit for thoroughly annihilating UVA in literally every aspect of the game, which is pretty much what happened. The Trojans gave the strongest performance of any team in week 1.

Washington - Give props to Oregon as a better team, but WOW. Jake Locker really needs to step up and be the leader of this team. He played a good second quarter, but the Huskies will need four of those, per game, to win.

Washington State - I had picked Oklahoma State to win this, so it isn't a big surprise - except, I thought it'd be close. Instead we watched Zac Robinson & co walk all over this defense while the Cougars looked content to go 3 and out. Five minutes into the third quarter, WSU's offense had moved the ball a net total of 24 yards! The Cowboys are not an elite defensive team or even a good defensive team; WSU needs to find a quarterback and an offensive identity.

Week 1 recap B10/Big E

This weekend showed the growth of these two conferences, and where they might be heading in the next few years. There has been a significant drop in talent in both of these conferences, and amazingly they are all still very competitive. However, it clearly showed that these two conferences have a few more years before their parity will climb to the point where they may be able to compete against the SEC.

So to break down what happened this weekend:

Thursday: Connecticut vs Hofstra and Cincinnati vs Eastern Kentucky. Connecticut is an aspiring Top 25 team, having shown last year that they have come a long way by beating Pitt and Rutgers last year. However they still have a ways to go, losing fairly handedly to both Cincinnati and West Virginia.

Cincinnati, on the other hand, was the surprise of the Big East, especially with the loss of a good coach in Dantoni. This should be their year, but next week they face the daunted Sooners. Putting that as a loss, their only real challenge afterwards should be WVU. This game was merely a warmup for the rest of the season.

Iowa State faced SD State. They only gave up two TDs, and in the fourth quarter. We'll really see whether Chizik has made second year improvements in week 3 when they face Iowa.

Saturday:

Ohio State played Tressel's old team, mainly to give the Penguins some money. However, as his moves showed in the first quarter, he used this game to prepare Terrelle Pryor for what's to come this season. You could say that 4 trips into the red zone with 3 field goals in the first half shows weakness, but taking into account that all three quarterbacks went in for a series or two in the first quarter you know that the offense didn't really get into a roll until the end of the second quarter. And in the end, Pryor showed what he was made of (dragging a few defenders into the end zone on a draw) and the defense shut down the Penguins completely. Ohio U has no chance, so we'll see if the offense can get on a better roll next week in preparation for USC in week 3.

Wisconsin may have a rushing attack, but they clearly showed that their passing attack needs work. They have two huge tight ends that can make things happen, but Evridge is only a mediocre quarterback that needs some time for refinement. PJ Hill showed he can still run through tackles and break some good runs, coming away with 210 yards in the game. Trust me, people will be expecting this - they will need some vertical attack to keep him from getting pummelled on every play.

Penn State vs Coastal Carolina? Not even worth three sentences.

Pittsburgh is the biggest disappointment for the Big East in week 1. Bowling Green is a decent MAC team, but they got blanked in the second half. That hand reaching the half century mark in passing is pitiful considering they don't have the quality receivers like Missouri does to make that worthwhile.

Northwestern is still in a rebuilding stage, but Bacher had enough control and their run game was successful against a Syracuse team that just didn't have any fire. The countdown to Robinson's firing started last year (winning 2 games is for n00bs), and the seat is only going to get hotter.

I don't even want to touch the Indiana and Iowa games, except to say that these kinds of matchups are exactly why other conferences say Big 10 sucks. Crap NC games doesn't do anything, doesn't make your team improve by playing bad competition. THANKS DELANEY!

West Virginia, however, is a confusing tale... since the final score hides the fact that they pretty much had the game in hand all the way through (2 td's in the fourth quarter, one with 2 seconds left). However, the baffling statistic is that they achieved less than 200 yards on the ground, which was not an uncommon figure with the Slaton/White duo of last year. Everyone claimed Noel Devine would be able to pick up the slack - but as you can clearly tell by the box score he doesn't have the breakaway talent that Slaton had. This is a cause for concern only if they were in a better conference... but they're not.

Michigan is a team that is TRULY rebuilding - new coach, new scheme, new quarterback, new running back... actually, you can say that pretty much the entire team is brand new. Having lost the race to get Pryor, they are stuck with a mediocre quarterback with no game-breaking ability (not to mention a poor arm and throwing technique). Their defense, which is supposed to keep them in games, made too many mistakes, and their offense will need a few more games to get into rhythm. Utah showed them how to run the option offense. We will have to keep close tabs to see how good Michigan gets by the time conference play rolls around.

Minnesota was the worst team of the Big 10 last year, and that will continue this year. Barely pulling out a win against a Northern Illinois team is sad... especially since Garrett Wolfe is no longer there. They lack playmakers in the backfield, and their rushing must improve by conference play otherwise they'll be blown away for the rest of the season.

Michigan State is on the rise! Yes, they lost to a Cal team that's on the decline, but Dantoni has done a phenomenal job in making this team competitive. Their problems start with penalties, but the positives will help them in the long run. They need to find a way to give the ball to Javon Ringer more - even though he carried the rock 27 times. If their O-line improves play, his yards per carry will increase. Hoyer needs to make better decisions throwing (40% completion percentage) but only threw one pick. The defense came up big, with one interception for a touchdown and another that prevented a touchdown. Both special teams suffered, with a blocked punt each. This is a quality loss for the Spartans, and if they start playing in both halves (they were non-existent in the first half) they really have a chance at beating the middle of the B10 conference.

GAME OF THE WEEK

Losing to the #6 team is not necessarily bad. Especially for an Illinois team that upset OSU last year. They wanted to avenge their loss to the Tigers from last year, but they were unable to keep it together. They had problems with two key things: penalties and turnovers. Would they have clinched out a win had Williams not thrown that 4th quarter interception? Would the defense, which lost their best player to the draft, have stepped up and gotten the ball back? Ron Zook must be happy that this year they competed a lot better than last year, but he knows that penalties and turnovers will kill him in the long run. However, Illinois still has time to blow away their next few opponents before meeting up with Penn State in the conference opener.

Sunday and beyond:

Louisville just sucks. All they get is a safety? Oh, and Rutgers? Nothing without Ray Rice. Fresno State looks to be really good this year...

All in all, we can clearly see that the Big 10 is gaining some momentum. Really - the addition of good coaches over the past 5 years into the league will help its transformation (Zook, Dantoni, Rodriguez, Bielema). We can also see that the Big East was really about star players: Rice made Rutgers, Slaton made WVU (with White), and Brohm made Louisville. Without them, the league is far worse off.